THE GREAT INDIAN RELIGIONS .

t he M orlo’

s 1Religions genes.

THE GREAT INDIANRELIGIONSBEING A POPULAR ACCOUNT OF

BRAHMANISM,HIND UISM

,B UDDHISM

,

AND ZOR GASTR IANISM .

M itt; giccounis offig": ifizbas aahntlgzx Elfinhian 5mm£ 00113,ifinhhlgist germ: 3.6mm, tigz E

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émbahzsia, fi ihlgism, gsinism,

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RETTANY,M .A .

,B .Sc .

,

Author of The World’

s Inhab itants,” Life of Charles Darwin, etc.

WITH NUMER OUS ILLUSTRAT IONS .

WARD,LOCK ,

BOWDEN AND co ,

LONEOI‘i z -JWARWICK HOUSE , SALISBURY SQUARE ,R e .

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(All rights reserved.)

P R EFA CE .

N recen t‘years there has been an enormous amoun t of

study of the religion s of India an d the allied peopleof an cien t Bactria an d Persia ; an d we may n ow formdefin ite Opin ion s as to many question s which in previousages were n ot un derstood . There can be little doubt ofthe great an tiquity of the religious ideas represen tedby the Vedas , extending probably to a thou san d yearsbefore Chr ist . - We see in them that the early belief innumerous sp irits superin ten ding departmen ts of n aturehad become crys tallised in to poetry of a high order inthe han ds of a series of religious poets ; an d we realisetoo the common origin of numerous ideas about religionand the gods which both the early Ar yan Hin du s and theGreeks had . W e find in them a worship of the Powers ofNature person ified

,which was in many ways of an ele

y ating n ature . Ideas of immortality an d a fu ture lifeare by n o mean s absen t . Later

,on

,we find expression s

poin ting to the existen ce of an cestor worship an d theten den cy to deifi cation of departed heroes .In still later times the remarkable attainmen ts of many

Hindus,both in philosophy and in legislation

,were dis

played ih such books as the Brahman as,the Upan ishads

,

an d the laws of Manu ; and by this time the Brahman shad made themselves of Vital importan ce as a religiouscaste

,without whom the Hindus could n ot attain o r

keep ceremon ial an d religious purity . Hen ceforwardthe Hindu system presen ts a remarkable combin ation of

v i PREFA CE .

degen eration in to polytheism with degrading rites,and

of movemen ts aiming at elevation an d reform . Thelater of these have been Sikhism an d the Brahmo Somaj

,

to which con siderable referen ce w ill b e made in the

following pages .Buddhism is really an offshoot of early Brahman ism

,

and was in part a revolt again st the iron tyranny of theBrahman s

,in part a revolt again st polytheism an d a re

action towards unbelief in any kn owledge of the gods orcertain ty of immortality. The idea of seeking ab sorption in the Infin ite was however conjoin ed with a practicalmoral disciplin e that lon g gave Buddhism an en ormousvitality an d power of in crease . Later

,like most religion s

,

it became degraded,practically polytheistic

,an d full of

mean ingless or superstitious rites . In power to developand influen ce people for good it appears n ow to be farinferior to Hin duism .

Zoroastri an i sm was a simpler ye t a kin dred system,

reversing early Vedism in some curious features . In itssimple worship of God by the symbol of fire it had a

lofty side . In its con ception of a dual governmen t of theun iverse b y

'

good and evil powers it con tributed mostimportan tly to world-philosophy . It n ever appears tohave degen erated like Hin duism,

for Mohammedan ismviolen tly expelled it , an d was man ifestly a higher religion .

Un til modern days its few surviving represen tatives weresunk in ignoran ce ev en of their own religion ; but a re

v iv al of learn ing has taken place among the Parsees,

which bids fair to keep their religion alive in its pureraspects for a longtime .

CONTENT S .

THE EARLY VEDIO R ELIG ION

THE B RAHMANISM OF THE CODES

M ODERN H INDU ISM. II.

LIFE OF B UDDHA

THE B UDDHIS T DOCTRINES AND SACRED B OOKS

THE B UDDHIST ORDER

M ODERN B UDDHISM. I.

M ODERN B UDDHISM. II.

J A INISM

ZOROA STER AND THE ZEND -AVE STA

THE ZOROAS TRIAN B OOKS—M ITHRA ISM

M ODERN PARSEEISM

BRAHMA (FROM A NATIVE PICTURE).

CHAPTER I.

Glitz (t ally Whit R eligion.

Analogies to Greek and Roman Religion—Date of the Rig-Veda, anterior towriting—Language of Rig-Veda—R eligious b asis —The earliest hymns

Worship of powers of Nature personifi ed—Dyaus and Prithiv i (heav enand earth) —The origin of things—Mitra and zVaruna—Indra, the god of

the clear b lue sky—The Maruts , or storm-gods

—The sun -gods , Surya

and Sav itri—Pushan—Soma, the Indian Bacchus or Dionysus—Ushas ,

the dawn goddess—Agni , the god of fi re—Tvashtri—The Asv in s fi Brah

manaspati—Vishnu—Yama, and a future life—Virtues rewarded b y

heav en—Future punishment—Tran sition to monotheism and pantheism- Visvakarman—Ab sence of later Hindu doctrines—Organisation of earlyHindus—MoraIS—The other Vedas—The Brahmanas—Human sacrifi ce

Animal sacrifi ce—Tradition of a flood—Immortality—Idea of the sun’

s

course—Origin .of caste—Self-assertion of Brahmans—Nature of the

Brahmanas Household sacrifi ces Purifi cation Fasting Estab lish

ment of sacrifi cial fi res—The Upanishads—The syllab le Om—The origin

of the world in ether—The Atman , or self- ex istent—The Svetas-vataraTransmigration of souls—Purpose of the Upanishads.

ATEVER may have been the history Of theAryan s

,by whom the Vedas were produced

,pre

Vion s to their en tering In di a it is certain that when theyB

2 THE EARLY VED JC RELIGION.

did so,long before Buddhism took its rise

,in the sixth

Analogies tocen tury B .C .

,they had developed religious ideas

Greek and an d con ception s which presen t singular an alo

f

l

it gies and Similarities to those which appearto be m ost primitive among the Greeks

,and

which suggest, if they do n ot prove that the European and Hin du Aryan s sprang from a common stock .

°

When we fin d their divin ities termed devas,

” or theShin ing on es

,

”an d recogn ise the same word in the

Latin D eus,divin ity

,when we compare the Dyaush

pitar (Heaven -Father) Of San ski it, with Jupiter or D iespiter Of Rome

,an d the Zeus Of Greece ; Varun a , the

en compassing sky in San skrit,with Ourah os Uranus in

Greek ; an d many other like words,we cann ot help realis

ing that, strange as it'

might seeni at first,Brahman ism

an d Greek an d Latin religion sprang from a similarsource. An d it is n ot very importan t which is the O lder .

We kn ow that the Hin du sacred b ooks,the Vedas

,—at

any rate some Of them,— are among the Oldest Of extant

human composition s,an d exhibit to us some Of the e arliest

'

human ideas that were han ded down by writing .

1

The best Opin ion s place the date Of the Rig-Veda somewhere between 800 and 1200 B .C . The collection con sistsof ten books

,con tain ing altogether hymn s ; eight

Date of the out Of ten books begin with hymn s addressedR ig

-Veda" to Agn i,and o thers addressed to In dra follow .

It appears probable that at least two distin ct gen eration sor seri es Of authors composed them

,the later b eing more

imitative an d reflective ; an d it is probable that some Ofthe hymn s date from a period earlier even than 1200

In the whole series there is n o referen ce to anything con

Antem r to n ected with writing,an d this suggests that they

writing are relatively an terior to the Book Of Exodus,

where “b ooks ” and writin g are distin ctly men tion ed .

Even long after the period Of the Rig-Veda,writing

1 See Muir,“ Original San skrit Tex ts

” Max Muller,“History Of

Ancient San skrit Literature ,” “Lectures on the Origin an d Growth Of R e

ligion ,

” “ Sacred B ooks Of the East”

(M . M ) ; Sir Mon ier Williams ,

Indian Wisdom ,

” “Hinduism ”(M. Sir W. W. Hun ter, Inclia ;

”

H. H. Wilson ’

s works.

RELIGIOUS BA S IS OF RIG o VEDA .v

is n ever men tion ed . Thus we must ascribe the preservation Of these won derful collection s en tirely to memory

,

which is,n o doubt

,equal to the task . Many years

,we

kn ow,are still regularly spen t by Brahman s in the slow

,

methodical leai n ing an d repetiti on Of their sacred literature ; an d there i s every Sign Of this habit having beenhan ded down from a period when n o other mean s of

preserving the Vedas existed . In an cien t composition s,

later than the Rig-Veda,we are told in detail every even t

in the life Of a Brahman,b ut there is n o men tion of his

learn ing to write . It is n ot till we come to the Laws Of

Manu that writing is spoken Of.

The v e language Of the B ig-Veda is a further con

firmation Of its an tiquity . The words are SO difficult Ofexplan ation as to have given rise to exten sive Language Ofcommen taries ev eI Sin ce . When the words w e R ig-V9”

kn own , great differen ces Of Opin ion arise as to how theyare to be conn ected together

,or what idea they represen t .

Often the most puerile or irrelevan t things (to us) arein terspersed among the loftiest sen timen ts , an d greatverbosity altern ates with the most terse an d pregn an taphorisms . This precludes the idea Of single authorshipOf any con siderable portion s . In fact

,early Hin du litera

ture was n ot con cern ed about authorship in the modernsen se . The word Veda

,mean i ng “kn owledge

,

” clearlyrefers to Divin e kn owledge

,imagin ed as proceeding like

breath from the self- existen t Spirit,an d in spiring a class

Of sages called Rishis ; and thus it is held to this day tobe absolutely infallible .

The gen eral form -

Of the Vedas is that Of the Simplestlyrical poetry

,with a n ot very regular metrical flow

an d the matter is almost exclusively religious . R eligious

This fact is regarded as due largely to the “513

character Of the people . N0 great people,surely

,said

Prof.Whi tn ey,

“ever presen ted the spectacle Of a developmen t more predomin an tly religious ; n on e ever groun dedits whole fabric Of social an d political life more absolutelyon a religious b asis ; n on e ever meditated more deeplyan d exclusively on things supern atural ; n on e ever rose

,

on the one han d,higher in to the airy region s of a purely

4 THE EA131, Y VEDIC RELIGION.

speculative creed,or sank

,on the other

,deeper in to

degrading superstition s the two extremes to which sucha ten den cy n aturally leads .”

Although the earliest Vedic hymn s are so an cien t,they

must have been preceded by an in defin itely long periodThe earliest Of growth and developmen t Of the race

,for the

hymns lan guage is fixed,complex

,full-grown ; the idea

Of gods was fully developed,in deed their number seems

to have been fixed as thirty- three,who are described as

all great and Old,and are besought n ot to lead their

votaries far from the paths Of their fathers . It maybesaid gen erally that in the earliest hymn s each god thatis man ife sted is for the time being con templated assupreme an d absolute

,and n ot limited by the powers Of

the rest . Max Miiller says,

“Each god is to the min dOf the supplian t as good as all the gods . He is felt at thetime as a real divin ity

,as supreme an d absolu te

,in spite

Of the n ecessary limitation s which,to our min d

,a plural

ity Of gods must en tail on every Single god .

”In fact the

Worship ofearlyHin du Of the Vedas was a worshipper Of

powers of the powers Of Nature person ified, and capableNature Of being in fluen ced by his praises

,prayers

,an d

pers‘m fi ed ‘ action s . Their qualities are n ot precisely limitedor distinguished from on e another . While the gods aretermed immortal

,they are mostly n ot regarded as un

created or self- existen t,but ‘are Often described as the

Offspring Of heaven and earth . There is n o un iformity,

however,on this poin t . But there are numerous passages

recon cilable with the View that some Of these gods repres en t deified an cestors

,as where they are said to have

acquired immortality by their acts , or their virtues , orby gift Of Agn i ; an d it is even implied that the godsn amed were the successors Of others previously existing .

Thus we find Indra thus invoked ,“WVhO m ade thy

mother a widow ? What god was presen t in the f ray,when thou didst slay thy father

,seizing him by the

foot ? ” and there is n o doubt that at times the gods are

represen ted as being at war with one an other . AS to the

powers and prerogatives Of the gods , they are above allx mortals

,who can by n o mean s frustrate their decrees ,

D YA US AND PRITHI VI. 5

they will reward dutiful worshippers,and pun ish the

n egligen t .

Heaven an d Earth,the progen itors of the gods

,are

represen ted by Dyaus an d Prithivi . Hymn s addressed tothem in clude the followin g

,

“At the festivals (I worship)

VARUNA (FROM A NATIVE PICTURE) .

with Offerings,and celebrate the praises Of Heaven an d

Ear th,the promoters Of righteousn ess

,the great

, Dyaus andthe W i se

,the en ergeti c

,who

,havmg gods for Prithivi

their Oifspring,thus lavish

,with the gods

,the

age

e

a’

afii)choicest blessings,in con sequen ce Of our hymn .

With my invocation s I adore the thought Of the b en eficent

6 TIIE EARLY VEDIC RELIGION.

Father,an d that mighty inheren t power of the Mo thei .

The prolific Paren ts have made all creatu i es,an d through

their favours (have con fe i red) wide immortality on theii

Offspi ing.

”SO closely did the Old Hin dus approach

the Greeks an d Roman s in their con ception s Of MotherE arth and Father Heaven . In various passages

,however

,

they are themselves spoken Of as created,e specially by

In dra,who formed them out Of his own body

,and to

The origin whom they do homage . How then was theof thmgs orig in Of things imagin ed ? The following extract is from Sir Mon ier Williams ’s metrical ren dering Of

one Of the most remarkable Vedic hymn s .

In the beginn ing there w as n either n ought n or aught ,Then there w as n either sky n or atmosphere abov e .

\Vhat then en shrouded all this teem ing un iverse ?

In the receptacle of what was it con tain ed

Was it en v eloped in the gulf profound Of w ater“

?

Then there w as n either death n or immortality,Then there w as n either day n or n ight, n or light n or darkn ess ,On ly the Existen t On e breathed calmly,

self- con tain ed .

Then first cam e darkn ess hid in darkn ess, gloom in gloom .

Next all w as w ater,all a chaos indiscrete

In which the On e lay void, shrouded i n n othingn ess .

But Dr . Muir ’s literal tran slation gives a better n otionOf the origin al : “There was then n either n on en tity n or

en tity ; there was n o atmosphere n or Sky above’

. Whatenveloped (all) ? Where , in the receptacle Of what (wasit con tain ed) Was it water

,the profoun d abyss Death

was n ot then,n or immortality ; there Was n o distin ction

Of day or n ight . That On e breathed calmly,self- sup

ported ; there was n othing differen t from,or above it .

In the beginn in g darkn ess existed,enveloped in Darkn ess .

Al l this was un distinguishable water . That On e whichlay void

,an d wrapped in n othin gn ess

,was developed by

the power Of fervour . Who kn ows,who here c an

declare,when ce has sprung

,when ce

,this creation ? The

gods are subsequen t to the developmen t Of this (un iverse)who then kn ows when ce i t arose From what thiscreation arose

,an d whether (any on e) made it or n ot,—he

who in the highest heaven is its ruler,he verily knows

,or

M ITRA AND VAR UNA .

(even ) he does n o t kn ow . From this we see that m an in

the an cien t Vedic times had pi ogi essed almost , if n ot

quite,as far in speculation as to the origin Of things as

the latest an d most advan ced Of m en,an d with as little

defin ite resul t .Leaving aside Aditi

,apparen tly a person ifi cation Of

un iv e i sal Nature or Being,the mother Of the gods

(Adityas) , an d capable Of setting people free M itra and

from sin,b ut con fessedly a difficu lt person ifi ca Varuna

tion to explain,we pass to con sider the characters of Mitra

and Varun a son s Of Aditi,frequen tly associated

,an d Often

in terpretable as day and n ight . Varun a is sometimesrepresen ted as visible ; an d the two deities are said tomoun t On a car drawn by horses , an d soar to the highestempyrean

,an d behold all ”things in heaven an d earth .

Sometimes the sun is called the eye Of Mitra an d Varun a ;an d bo th join tly an d separately they are termed king Of

all and un iversal mon arch . Varun a has attributes likethose Of the Greek Ouran os

,Latin ised as Uranus . He

made the sun to Shin e ; the win d is his breath ; rivercourses are hollowed out by his comman d

,an d the rivers

pour their water into the on e ocean b ut n ever fill it . Hekn ows the flight Of birds in the sky

,the path Of ships

on the ocean,the course Of the far- travelling win d

,an d

beholds all the sacred things that have been or shall bedon e . He beholds as if he were close at han d . Whatevertwo person s sitting together

,devise

,Varun a the king

kn ows it,as a third . He has un limited con trol of m en

,

an d is said to have a thousan d remedies ; hen ce he isbesought to Show his deep an d wide ben evolen ce

,an d

drive away evil an d sin . Muir ’s verse tran slation,almost

literal,is so attractive that it deman ds quotation .

The m ighty Lord on high ,our deeds as if at han d, espies ;

The gods kn ow all m en do,though m en w ould fain their deeds

disgu ise .

Whoev er stands,whoev er m ov es

,or steals from place to place ,

Or hides him in his secret cell—the gods his m ov em en ts trace

Wherev er tw o together plot, an d deem they are alon e,

K ing Varun a is there , a third, an d all their s chem es are kn own .

This earth is his,to him belong those v ast an d boun dless skies ;

B oth seas w ithin him rest,and yet in that small pool he lies .

THE EARLY VEDIC RELIGIOIV.

Whoever far beyond the sky Should think his way to W ing,He could n ot there elude the grasp Of Varun a the King.

His spies descending from the Skies glide all the w orld around,

Their thousan d eyes all- scan n ing sweep to earth

’s rem o test bound.

Whate’er exists in heav en an d earth

,whate

’er beyond the skies

,

B efore the eyes Of Varun a, the King, un folded lies .

The ceaseless w inkings all he coun ts Of ev ery m ortal’s eyes ;

He w ields this un iv ersal fram e,as gam ester throw s his dice .

Those kn o tted n ooses which thou fi ing’

st,O God

,the b ad to sn are

,

All liars let them ov ertake,b ut all the truthful spare .

iNDRA (FROM A NATIVE PICTURE ).

In this and in m anyother passages Varun aappears as a moral B eing Of high elevation .

His forgiven ess is im

plored by the Rishi orsacred bard ; an d it isu r g e d t h a t w in e

,

a n g e r,d i c e

,o r

thoughtlessn ess haveled him astray . Verymuch the same at

tributes are ascribedto Mitra and Varun atogether as to thelatter alon e . It willb e s e e n later howclosely the ZoroastrianMithra resembles theIn d i a n Mitra ; and

there cann ot be muchdoubt that this con

c eption Of the Deityexisted previous to the separation Of the In dian from theIran i an (Persian ) bran ch . Later

,Varun a became specially

associated with the rule over water,and was solicited to

sen d flood and rain from the sky .

IndrmheIn dra and Agn i

,at first less importan t than

god of the the foregoing,later grow in importan ce : they

Clear b lue were born Of paren ts,and have v ariOus striking

qualities,and there are many features Of

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0 THE EARLY VEDIC RELIGIOIV.

ev itab ly suggest the idea Of a conflict between Opposingforces ; even we ourselves Often speak Of the war orstrife Of the elemen ts . The worshipper would at on e

time tran sform the fan tastic shapes Of the clouds in tothe chariots and horses Of his god

,and at an other time

would seem to perceive in their piled-up masses the' cities

and Castles which he was advan cing to overthrow .

” Frequen tly Indra is saluted as the god most powerfu l overthe ex te i nal world

,

“ the most adorab le Of the adorable,

the caster down Of the un shaken,the most distinguished

Of living things .

” His W OI shippers are enjoin ed to havefaith In him

,and his power i s asserted again st den ials Of

scepticism . He has a love for mortals,an d i s the helper

Of all men,a wall Of defen ce an d a deliverer

,hearing an d

an swerin g prayers . He is supposed to be capable Of

bestowing all kinds Of temporal ben efits,an d in fact

arbitrarily to con trol the destin ies Of m en . Yet the sim

plicity Of the worshipper is sometimes shown by prayersthat the god w ill prove his prowess

,an d statemen ts that

“ little has been heard Of as don e upon earth by on e suchas thou art

” In dra is especially the champion and

guardian Of the Aryan Hindus again st the darker raceswhom they subjected . It appears almost as if the conc eption Of In dra expanded with the advan ce Of the Aryan sover In dia

,while that Of Varun a declin ed

,who i s more

directly related to the early common Aryan belief beforeIn dia, was reached

,and which appears also in the Zoroas

trian Ormuzd an d'

the Greek Ouran os . An other viewregards Dyau s as the god whom In dra threw in to theshade ; an swering to the differen ce between the timewhen in the more elevated and moun tain ou s region s Of

Cen tral Asia,the brillian t radian ce Of heaven was the

holiest an d most desirable thing,and the later t ime

,in

In dia,when the rainy sky was m ost longed for

,and its

I epresen tation as Indra became m ost popular .

Passing by Parjanya,the thunderin g rain god

,and

Vayu,the win d

,as less importan t deities

,we find the

The Mgruts Maruts , Rudi as , or storm gods,many In num

or storm~ ber,Often associated w ith Indra an d With Agn i .

gOds Sorii e extracts from on e Of the hymn s addressed

P USHA I V. I

to them will give a better idea Of the con ception s attachedto them than a description . They shake with theirstrength all beings , even the strongest , on earth and in

heaven .

b

They who confer power, the roarei s,

the dev our ’

ei s Of foes,they made win ds an d lightn ings by

their powers . The Shakers milk the heavenly udde i s

(clouds) , roaming aroun d they fill the earth with milk(rain ) . Mighty you are , powerful , Of won derfu lsplen dour

,firmly rooted like moun tain s

, (yet) lightlygliding along -

i i chew up forests like elephants .Give

,O Maruts

,to the W OI Shippers s trength

glorious,invincible in battle

,brillian t

,wealth- conferring

,

praiseworthy,kn own to all m en . Let u s foster our kith

an d kin during a hun dred w in tei s . (M . M .)The gods person ifying the Sun

,un der differen t phases

,

ai e Sin ya an d Sav iti i,who are praised and describ ed i n

the Veda with appropriate epithets ; they are The Sum

di awn in cai s by numerous horses preserve all gods Surya

things,en able m en to perform their work

,and

and 5am“

see all things,both the good and the bad deeds Of mortals .

Surya is sometimes said to be depen den t on In dra,who

causes him to Shin e an d prepares his path . Pushan is

an other solar deity,a guide on roads and jour

n eys,a protector and multiplier Of cattle an d

Of human possession s gen e1 ally. A hymn addi essed to

him run s thus : “Con duct us,Pushan

,over our I oad ;

remove distress,son Of the deliv e i er , go 0 11 b efOI e us .

Smite away froin our path the destructive and injuriouswolf which seeks after us . Drive away from 0 111 paththe waylayer

,the thi ef

,the robber . 0 god who

b i ingest all blessings , an d art dis tinguished by thy goldenspear

,make wealth easy Of acquisition . Convey us past

our Oppon en ts ; make our paths easy to traverse ; gainstrength for us here .

”An othe i hymn more emphatically

prays the god fOI person al fav om s :“Bring to us wealth

suitable for men,and a man ly suitable householder who

shall bestow on ii s gifts . Impel to li b ei ality,O glowing

Pushan , even the man who would fain bestow n o thing ;soften the sou l even Of the n iggard . Open up paths bywhich we may Obtain food ; slay our en emies ; let our

0 THE EARLY VEDIC RELIGION”

.

ev itab ly suggest the idea of a conflict between opposingforces ; even we ourselves Often speak Of the war orstrife Of the elemen ts . The worshipper would at on e

time tran sform the fan tastic Shapes Of the clouds in tothe chariots and horses of his god

,and at an other time

would seem to perceive in their piled-up masses the citiesand castles which he was advan cing to overthrow .

” Frequen tly Indra is saluted as the god most powerfu l overthe extern al world

,

“ the most adorab le Of the adorable,

the caster down Of the un shaken,the most distin guished

Of living things .” His tVOi shippers are enjoin ed to havefaith i n him

,and his power i s asserted agai n st den ials Of

scepticism . He has a love for mortals,and i s the helper

Of all m en,a wall Of defen ce an d a deliverer

,hearing an d

an swerin g prayers . He is supposed to be capab le Of

bestowing all kinds Of temporal ben efits,an d in fact

arbitrarily to con trol the destin ies Of m en . Yet the sim

plicity Of the worshipper is sometimes shown by prayersthat the god w ill prove his prowess

,and statemen ts that

“ little has been heard Of as don e upon earth by on e suchas thou art

” In dra is especially the champion an d

guardian Of the Aryan Hin dus again st the darker raceswhom they subjected . It appears almost as if the conc eption Of In dra expanded with the advan ce Of the Aryan sover In dia

,while that Of Varun a declin ed

,who i s more

directly related to the early common Aryan belief,

beforeIn dia was reached

,and which appears also in the Zoroas

trian Ormuzd an d the Greek Ouran os . An other Viewregards Dyau s as the god whom In dra threw in to theshade ; an swering to the differen ce between the timewhen in the more elevated and moun tain ou s region s Of

Cen tral Asia,the brillian t radian ce Of heaven was the

holiest an d iii ost desirable thing . and the later time,in

In dia,when the i ai i iy sky was m ost longed for, and its

i epresen tation as In dra became m ost popular .

Passing by Parjanya,the thunderin g rain god

,and

Vayu,the win d

,as less importan t deities

,we find the

The Maruts Maruts , Rudi as , or storm gods,many in num

or storm ber,Often associated with Indra an d With Agn i .

350“ Sorii e extracts from on e Of the hymn s addressed

P USHAIV. I

to them will give a b e ttei idea Of the con ception s attachedto them than a description .

“They shake with theirstrength all beings , even the strongest, on earth and in

heaven . They who con fer power,the roarers

,

the dev ourei s Of foes,they made win ds an d lightn ings by

their powers . The shakers milk the heaven ly udders(clouds), roaming aroun d they fill the earth with milk(rain ) . Mighty you are , powerful, Of won derfu lsplen dour

,firmly rooted like moun tain s

, (yet) lightlygliding along —

i i chew up forests like elephants .

Give,0 Maruts

,to the W OI Shippers s trength

glorious,invincible in battle brillian t

,wealth- confe i ring,

praiseworthy,kn own to all m en . Let us foster our kith

an d kin during a hun dred win ters . (M . M .)The gods person ifying the Sun

,un der differen t phases

,

are Surya an d Savitri,who are praised and describ ed in

the Veda with appropriate epithets ; they are The Suh _

drawn In cai s by numerous hoi ses, pi eserv e all gods Surya

things,en able men to perform their work

,and

and 3am”

see all things,both the good and the bad deeds Of mortals .

Surya is sometimes said to be depen den t on In dra,who

causes him to shin e and prepares his path . Pushan is

an other solar deity,a guide on roads and jour

n eys,a protector an d multiplier Of cattle and

Of human possession s gen ei ally. A hymn addressed tohim run s thus : “Conduct us

,Pushan

,over our road ;

I emov e distress,son Of the deliv e i er ; go 0 11 before us

’

Smite away froin our path the destructive and injuriouswolf which seeks after us . Drive away from 0 111 paththe waylayer

,the thief

,the robber . 0 god who

b i ingest all blessings , an d art distinguished by thy goldenspear

,make wealth easy Of acquis iti on . Convey us past

our Oppon en ts ; make our paths easy to traverse ; gainstrength for us here .

”An othei hymn more emphatically

prays the god fOi person al fav ou i s : ‘Bring to us wealthsuitable for men

,and a man ly suitable householder who

shall bestow on ii s gifts . Impel to lib ei ality,O glowing

Pushan,even the man who would fain bestow n o thing ;

soften the sou l even Of the n iggard . Open up paths bywhich we may Obtain food ; slay our en emi es ; let our

1 : THE EARLY VEDIC RELIGION .

design s succeed,O glorious god . With him is sometimes

associated Soma,and the tw o are celebrated together as

the gen erators Of wealth and preservers Of the world .

Soma,the god an imating the exhilarating juice Of the

soma plan t,probably a Species Of Asclep ias, seems to represen t Dionysus Or Bacchu s among the early

S

fil

gefl“ In dian gods . The whole Of the hymn s

,1 14 in

Bacchus or number,Of the n in th book Of the Rig-Veda ar

Dwnysus ‘ dedicated to him . Prof. Whitn ey says Of him :

The simple-min ded Aryan people had n o soon er perceivedthat un der the in fluen ce Of this liquid the in dividual wasprompted to and capable Of deeds beyon d hi s n aturalpowers

,than they foun d in it somethin g divin e ; the plan t

which afforded it became to them the king Of plan ts the

process Of preparing it was a holy sacrifice ; the in strumen ts used therefore were sacred .

” The worship of Somawas very an cient , as it is men tion ed in the Zen d- avesta .

TO Soma are attributed almost all divin e power and

hon ours,especially in referen ce to his influen ce on the

other gods and on his human votaries ; b u t his worshipdeclin ed and almost wholly passed away with the earlyVedic worship .

Ushas,the goddess Of dawn

,has many Of the most

beautiful hymn s addressed to her . She is described as

Ushas , therestoring con sciousn ess

,smiling like a fiatterer

,

dawn awaken in g all creatures to cheerfuln ess,rousing

g°ddess' in to motion every living thing ,born again and

again,revealing the en ds Of the sky .

“Blessed Ushas,

says the worshipper,

“ thou who,an imated by strength

,

shines t forth with won derful riches,may I Obtain that

ren own ed an d solid wealth which con sists in stout son s,

numerous slaves,and horses .” (M .) Ushas is most usually

described as the daughter Of the sky,and is said :

to havethe sun for her lover .

‘ The n ame Ushas (Ushasa)iden tical with the Greek

’

H a

’

>9 (EOS) and the Latin Aurora

Agn i,the god Of fire (the Roman Ign is , the Slav on ian

Ogn i), is a most promin en t deity, being On ly paralleled,

Agni , thein the number Of hymn s addressed to him

,by

god of fire Indra , His characteristics aptly portray the

A GNI. 3

w on der w ith which our forefathers Viewed fire. Agn i isan imm OI tal an d messenger from an d to the gods

,who

has taken up his abode with m an . He is both sage andsacrifi c er

,supreme director Of religiou s ceremon ies and

duties .

“O Agn i,thou from whom

,as a n ewborn male

,

un dying flames proceed,the brillian t smoke goes towards

the sky,for as messenger thou art sen t to the gods thou

whose power spreads over the earth in a momen t,when

thou has t grasped food with thy jaws , —like a dashingarmy thy blast goes forth ; with thy lamben t flame thouseem est to tear up the grass . Him alon e

,the ever youth

ful Agn i,men groom like a horse in the even ing an d at

dawn ; they b ed him as a stranger in his couch .

”

(M . M .)The world an d the heaven s are made man ifest at hisappearan ce

,after having been sw allowed

e

llp in darkn ess .

He Is all devouring,has a hui n ing head

,i s thousan d- eyed

and thousan d horn ed ; his flames roar like the waves Ofthe sea

,he soun ds like thun der

,and roars like the win d .

He is described as having the highest divin e fun ction sOf all kinds

,an d his votaries prosper and live long . He

pro tects an d blesses the worshipper who sweats to bringhim fuel

,or wearies his head to serve him . Prayers were

made to him for all kinds Of blessings,an d for forgiven ess

for any sin committed through folly . The same simplefamiliarity i n speaking to the gods which we have n oticedbefore i s seen in such an addi ess as this : “ If

,Agn i , thou

wert a mortal,an d I w e i e an imm Oi tal , I would n o t

abandon thee to wrong or to penury . My worshippershould n ot be poor

,n or di stressed

,n or miserable .

” Thatthei e was also an association Of Agn i w ith a future maybe gathered from the following( M paraphi ase . (M . IV.)

Deliv er,m ighty lord, thy w orshippers ,

P urge us from tain t Of S in,and when we die

Deal m ercifully w ith u s on the pyre ,Burn ing our bodies w ith their load Of guilt,But bearing our etern al part on high

To lum in ous abodes an d realm s Of bliss ,For ev er there to dwell w ith righteous men .

Tv ashtar is the artisan and skilful con triver,and in

4 THE EARLY VEDIC RELIGION.

many ways an swers to Hephais tos an d Vulcan . Heharpen s the iron axe Of Brahman aspati and

forges the thunderbolts Of In dra . All kinds ofcreated powers are attri buted to him . The Asvin s are

the earliest , bringers Of light in the morn ingSky, before the dawn ,

and are Often conn ectedwith Surya ; they were en thusiastically worshipped an d

praised,being hailed as Chasers away Of darkn ess

,and

described as the guardian s Of the Slow and hin dmos t, asphysician s restoring the lame , blin d and sick

,as placing

the productive germ in all creatures,and as capable Of

ren ewing the youth Of all. Con sequen tly they weresupplicated for varied blessings

,an d were begged to over

whelm an d destroy the n iggard who Offered n o oblation s .

It is thought by good authorities that these gods represen tdeified mortals who were at the same time swift in theirmovemen ts and appeared to possess remarkable healingpowers .A somewhat later god than these is variously kn own

as Brihaspati a nd Brahman aspati,and person ifies the

Brahmehas worshipper, represen ted by the priest an d sacriPati fi cer in terceding with the gods

,thus showing

a distin ct advan ce in moral ideas . The word Brahman ison e Of the most difficult in all San skrit

,having been very

diversely derived and explain ed ; but while in its highestuse it came to den ote the Objective Self or Cause Of the

un iverse,it may have origin ally represen ted the impulse

and striving towards the gods,then every sacred word,

formula,ceremony

,or act

,and fin ally the priest. Brah

m anaspati is represen ted as the god of prayer,aiding

In dra in con quering the c loud demon,a nd in some

in stan ces appearing to be iden tified with Agn i . He isthe Ofif

'

spring Of the two worlds (Heaven an d Earth), andis the in spirer Of prayer

,an d by prayer accomplishes hi s

design s ; he moun ts the chariot Of the ceremon ial an d

proceeds to conquer the en emies Of prayer and Of the gods .He is the guide and protector Of the pious

,whom he saves

from calamities an d b lesses with wealth .

Vishnu is a god comparatively little men tion ed in theRig-Veda

,but attain ing great importan ce later. He Is

Tvashtar.

The Asvin s.

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1 6 THE EARLY VEDIC‘

RELIGION.

TO Yama,m ighty king, b e gifts and homage paid .

He w as the firs t Of m en that died,the fi rst to brav e

Death’s rapid rushing stream

,the first to po in t the road

TO heav en ,an d w elcom e others to that bright ab ode .

NO power can rob us of the home thus w on b y thee .

0 king, w e com e ; the born must die , must ti ead the path

That thou hast ti od—the path b y which each race Of men ,

In long succession,and our fathers

,too ,

hav e passed.

Soul Of the dead"depart ; fear n ot to take the road

The an cien t road—b y which thy an cestors hav e gon e ;Ascen d to meet the god

—to meet thy happy fathers ,Who dwell In bliss w ith him . Fear n ot to pass the guards

The four-eyed brin dled dogs—that watch for the departed.

R eturn un to thy hom e,0 soul Thy S in an d shame

Leav e thou behind On earth assume a Shin ing form

Thy ancien t Shape—refined and from all taint set free.

The two four- eyed dogs are Of in terest in comparisonw ith Cerb ei us

,the dog Of Tartarus . Yama is n ot repro

sen ted 111 the Rig-Veda,though he is in the later mytho

logy,as having anything to do with the future pun ish

men t Of the wicked . His dogs are said to wan der about '

among m en as his messengers,and to guard the road to

his abode ; the dead are~

adv ised to hurry past them withall speed. When the remain s Of the dead on e have beenplaced upon the fun eral pile

,Agn i

,the god Of fire

,is

besought n ot to scorch or con sume him,but to convey

him to the fathers as an Offering .

“Let his eye go tothe sun

,his breath to the win d . GO to the sky an d to

earth,according to n ature or go to the waters

,if that is

suitable for thee . As for his unborn part,do thou (Agn i)

kindle it wit-h thy heat with those forms Of thin e whichare auspicious convey it to the world Of the righteous .”

The Spirit is then im agin ed to en ter upon a more perfectlife in which all desires are fulfilled ; o ccupation will alsobe foun d i n fulfilling the pleasure of the gods . It mustnot b e supposed that me time when even the gods are

I epgesen ted as marrying and indulging in soma,the

heaven Of the departed would be idealised .

The following passage will give an idea Of the V i rtue s

Virtues for which heaven was given : Let him departrewarded b y to those who through rigorous abstraction are

Heaven“ invin cible . Let him depart to the combatan ts

FUT URE P UNISHM EN T. 1 7

battles,to the heroes who have there sacrificed their

lives,or to those who have bestowed thousan ds Of largesses .

Let him depart,Yama

,to those austere

,

an cien t fatherswho have preached an d promoted sacred rites .

” Thesefathers are in some hymn s held up as Objects Of admiration to their descen dan ts ; their descen dan ts supplicatetheir good will

,deprecate their wrath

,an d pi ay for their

protection . They are asked to give them wealth,long

life,an d Offsprin g . They are Supposed to rejoice In

libation s an d sacrificial food,an d to come In thousan ds to

the sacrifi ces .

As to future pun ishmen t,Indi a is in the ten th book

Of the R ig-Veda prayed to con sign to the lower dai kn essthe m an who injures hi s worshipper ; b ut it is Future

n ot always c ei tain that this lower darkn ess pumshment

sign ifies a place Of pun ishment . In the n in th book Somais said to hurl the hated an d irreligious in to the abyssb ut referen ces to future pun ishmen t are con fessedly vaguean d indi stin ct in the R ig-Veda .

On e Of the fin est Of the hymn s Of the Rig-Veda is the121st in the ten th book

,thus tran slated by Max Miiller

In the beginnin g there arose the Source Of goldenlight— He was the on ly born Lord Of all that is . Heestablished the earth

,an d the sky

—Who is the God towhom we shall Offer our sacrifice ? (This last clause isrepeated after each verse .)He who gives life

,He who gives strength ; whose

blessing all the bright gods desire ; whose shadow isimmortality wh

’

ose shadow is death .

“He who thr ough Hi s power is the on ly King Of thebreathing and awaken ing world ; He who govern s all ,man and beast .

He whose power these sn owy moun tain s,whose power

the sea proclaim s,with the distan t river—He whose these

region s are as it were Hi s two arms .

“He thr ough whom the sky is bright an d the earthfirm

,He through whom the heaven was

‘

established,n ay

the highest heaven,He who measured out the light in

the air .

“He to whom heaven an d earth,standing firm by His

C

1 8 TIIE EARL Y VE DIC R ELIGION.

will,look up

,trembling inwardly ; He over whom the

rising sun shin es forth .

Wherever the mighty water- clouds wen t , where theyplaced the seed and lit the fire

,then ce arose He who is

the on ly life Of the bright gods .He who by His might looked even over the water

clouds,the clouds which gave strength an d lit the sacri

fi c e,He who is God above all gods .

“May He n ot destroy us,He the creator Of the earth ;

or He the righteous who created the heaven ; He who alsocreated the bright and mighty waters is

”

Thus we have con templated in the earliest Vedic hymn sa series Of con ception s Of distin ct deities associated with

Transition tothe powers

o

Of Nature,and correspon dingly

monotheism n amed . It i s on ly later that the idea seemsand

,to arise that these were all represen tation s Of

panthel sm‘

differen t aspects Of one power,an d sometimes

this appears to proceed from a desire to magn ify the

particular god whose praises are being specially celebrated ;later

,n ew n ames were u sed to sign ify these more en larged

con ception s,such as Visvakarman an d Prajapati

,n ot

limited to any particular departmen t, but believed to b ethe divin e powers govern in g the earth . An other kin dOf expression Shows an early form Of pan theism

,iden t ify

ing the godhead with Nature : Thus Aditi is the sky,

Aditi is the air,Aditi is the mother an d father an d son .

Aditi is all the gods an d the five classes Of m en . Aditiis whatever has been born . Aditi is whatever Shall beborn .

”

(M .)Visv akarman (at first a n ame Of In dra) , the

‘ greatarchitect Of the un iverse

,i s in the ten th book Of the Rig

vrsve . Veda represen ted as the all- seeing god,who has

113311 113 11 . on every side eyes,faces

,arms

,and feet

,

'

thefather gen erator who kn ows all worlds

,an d gives the

gods their n ames . Similar attributes are in other hymn sascribed to other divin e beings

,such as Brahman

,Pra

j apati, etc . ; these being probably by differen t authors .We see here the product Of the most advan ced thoughtamong these early Aryan s

,in cluding a singular variety

Of attempts to express the thoughts to whi ch the great

OR GANISA TION OF EARL Y HINDUS . 19

phen omen a Of the un iverse gave rise in their minds . Thatthese con ception s shou ld be vague an d Often discordan tan d con fused

,an d should in clude much that is puerile

,i s

to be expected,when we remember that the sum Of

human thought up to the presen t day is m an cann ot bysearching fin d out God .

”

Sir Mon ier Will iams thus expresses his mature con

clusion s on some importan t poin ts : “The Vedic hymn s

con tain n o allusion to the doctrin e Of tran smi Ab sence of

gration Of souls,which is a con spicuous char later Hindu

acteristic Of the Hin du creed in the later docmnes ‘

system . Nor do they afford any san ction to the prohib ition Of widow marriages

,the en couragemen t Of child

marriages,the iron rules Of caste

,an d the in terdiction Of

foreign travel . Nor is there i n them any eviden ce thatthe person ification s Of the forces Of n ature were repre

sen ted by images or symbols carved out Of wood or ston e .

An imals were killed fOr sacrifices as well as for food an d

we fin d n o trace Of the Objection to eat the flesh Of cows,

which became so strong at a later period .

The people Of the Vedas appear to have inhabited thePunj ab

,an d to have on ly gradually exten ded their power

in to the tracts watered by the Jumn a andOrganisation

Ganges . Every father Of a fami ly at first was Ofo

early

en titled to act as p riest in his own fam ily,

Hmdus'

every chief in his own tribe ; b ut as the hymn s orprayers or Offerings began to grow elaborate

,there was a

tenden cy to restrict worship,especially on importan t

occasion s,to speci al priests

,who kn ew the approved

hymn s or the prayers which had been believed to besuccessful . In time it became a part Of the chief’s creditto retain about him favourite Or n oted priests

,an d their

Offices,like those Of the chi efs

,ten ded to become here

ditary. Great gifts were lavished upon the priests by thekings

,an d many Of the Vedic hymn s commen d thi s

practice . Some Of the hymn s themselves were composedby kings ; an d the R ishis gradually asserted themselvesso far as to claim superior rank to the temporal rulers

,an d

erect themselves in to a distin ct caste of Brahman s ; thisposition was not

,however

,acquired without a struggle .

2 0 TffE EARLY VED JC RELIGION.

Special families were distinguished by symbols,such as

the number an d arrangemen t of thei r looks of hair,or

their bein g shaven in peculiar ways .As to morals un der this régime, it appears that on e

w ife was the rule,while a plurality was tolerated ; women

might marry a secon d time,an d appear to

have had some freedom of choice . Immoralitywas by n o mean s unkn own

,an d In dra is said to have

declared that “ the min d of a woman was ungovern a b le,

and her temper fickle .

” Un truth was con demn ed,an d

the gods were said to pun ish lying ; ~ thiev es an d robbersare men tion ed as infesting the highways or stealingsecretly . Liberality and fidelity were held in high esteem .

How forcible is the con trast between the b en efic en ceand the brightn ess , the helpfuln ess an d the kindlin ess ofthe gods

,as imagin ed by the earlier Aryan s

,an d the

severity,the ruthlessn ess

,the cruel ty

,afterwards associated

with Hin du gods . Direct access to the gods,direct ben e

fits in return for prayer and offerings in ten sity of prayeran d meditation

,ferven cy of petition

,in evitably securin g

blessing,these are cardin al features of the early Hin du

religion .

The Sama-Veda,an d the Yajur-Veda are smaller col

lection s formed main ly out of the Rig-Veda,b ut con sider

The other ably modified the former in verse,relating to

Vedas the Soma offering,the latter in prose

,relating

to the other sacrifices . The Yajur-Veda belongs to aperiod when the Aryan s had progressed into EasternIn dia

,and when the Brahman s had

’

acquired supremacy.

The fourth great Vedic collection,the Atharva-Veda

,

belongs to a still later period,probably that of the Brah

man as,and con tain s the hymn s and serv ices then in use

,

modified or developed from the Vedic time . They exhibita growth of belief in evil powers

,an d con tain a series

of formulas design ed to protect again st these,and again st

diseases an d n oxious an imals an d plan ts,together with

cursings of en emies,and magic verses abou t all kin ds of

daily even ts,design ed to coun teract unfavourable even ts .

This Veda con tain s a great number of words used by thepeople .

Morals.

ANZZIIAL SA CRZFJCE . 2 1

Not ye t within the region of dates and relation to

kn own person s,we com e to the n ext great division of

an cien t Hin du literature,the Brahman as

,which The

exhibit to us a fully developed sacrificial system,Brahmanas

an d are in ten ded for the use of the priests or Brahman s .We fin d here a series of prose composition s describingthe conn ection of the sacred songs and words with thesacrificial rites . They may date from the seven th oreighth cen turies We see i n them

,as in the case of

so many priesthoods,the ten den cy to elaborate

,to develop

a ritual which could on ly be carried out by an hereditarycaste

,an d which furn ished a mean s of deman ding large

con tribution s from the votaries . The length of the Brahman as themselves is wearisome an d is matched by theirdogmatic assertion an d their complex symbolism . Eachof the collection s of Vedic hymn s has its proper Brahman as

,

there being n o fewer than eight Brahman as to the SamaVeda . Besides ceremon ial direction s

,these Brahman as

con tain numerous materials for tracing the growth of

Hin du religious ideas . In on e story of a king Human

who had n o son,after extolling the ben efits sacrifi ce.

that a son brings,the king offers , if a son be born to

him,to sacrifice him to Varun a . \Vhen the son was born

and w as told of his destiny,he refused

,an d left his

father ’s home . Disappoin ted of his victim,Varun a

afflicted the father with dropsy . The son wan dering foryears in the forest

,at last foun d a Brahman hermit in

distress,whose second son volun tarily offered to be sold

in order that he might be sacrificed in stead of the king ’sson . Fin ally the substitute

,by the virtue of Vedic

prayers,was released from sacrifi ce . An other n arrative

describes how the gods killed a man for their Animal

Victim,an d the part of him fit for sacrifice sacrifi ce.

en tered successively in to a horse,an ox

,a sheep

,an d a

goat,which were all sacrificed in turn . The sacrificial

elemen t remain ed longest in the goat,which thus became

specially fit for sacrifice . Here we may see how an in troduc ed human sacrifice may have been replaced by an imalsacrifice .

In the Satapatha-Brahmana,perhaps the most in terest

2 THE EARL Y VEDIC RELIGION.

ing of all these books,there is foun d an early tradition

Tradition of of a flood . Manu,a holy man

,was warn ed by

a fi ood a fish that a flood wou ld sweep away all creatures

,b ut he would rescue him . He was directed to

build a ship and en ter it when the flood rose he did so,

and fasten ed the fish to the ship,an d was drawn by it

beyon d the n orthern moun tain s . When the flood subsided Manu was the on ly m an left ; a daughter wasmysteriously born to him by virtue of religiou s rites

,and

ultimately the world was peopled with the son s of Manu .

In later times it was said that the fish was an in carn ationof Brahma

,who assumed that form in order to preserve

The doctrin e of immortality is more defin itely presen tedin the same Brahman a than in the Vedic hymn s . The

gods had by toilsome religious rites becomeimmortal . D eath complain ed to the gods that

m en would follow their example . The gods en acted thatn o being should then ceforward become immortal in hisown body

,but should first presen t his body to D eath .

A remarkable passage shows that the an cien t Brahman s had a very advan ced con ception about the sun :

Idea of the“The sun n ever sets n or rises . When people

sun’

s course thin k to themselves the sun is setting,he on ly

changes about after reaching the en d of the day,an d

makes n ight below an d day to what is on the other side .

Then when people think he rises in the morn ing , he on lyshifts himself about after reaching the en d of the n ight,an d make s daybelow,

an d n ight to what is on the otherside . In fact he n ever does set at all .”

There seems little doubt that the origin and es tablishmen t of the caste system was largely due to the successfulOrigin of assertion by the Brahman s of their superiorQaste rank

,combin ed with the growth of a class of

cultivators distin ct from the warriors,who at first were

the great majority o f the people . By this time the con

quering Aryan s had spread themselves over the b asmof the Jumn a an d Ganges

,and the Brahman s foun d i t

n ecessary an d advan tageous to show that they had amore n oble

,powerful

,and importan t religion than the

Immortality.

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1 THE EARLY VEDIC RELIGION

the vow"May I be equal to it,may I succeed 111 it"’

For Agn i is Lord of Vows to the gods,an d it is to him

therefore that he addresses these words . As to the

fasting,it is con ten ded that the essen ce of the

vow con sists in fasting,for the gods see thi ough

the m1n d of m an,an d when he takes the vow they kn ow

that he mean s to sacrifice to them n ext mornmg, an d

b etake themselves to his house . It would then be un becoming in him to take food before they have eaten

,and

he may on ly eat what is n ot offere d in sacrifice,which

must be on ly what grows in the forest .Eve1 y n ight an d morn ing a burn t offering of fresh milk

had to be made to Agn i,an d on the morn ing of the sacri

fi c ial day, the householder chose his Brahman or supermten ding priest

,an official who n ow becomes promin en t

this class having in deed been n o doubt the origi n ator of themodern Brahman s . Then follows a most complex seriesof direction s an d explan ation s as to the various offerings .Equally elaborate are the direction s given for the cere

mony of establishing sacrificial fires by a young house

Estab lishholder . Four offi ciators were required besides

ment of the sacrifi ce1 ; they erected two sheds or firehouses by strict rules

,and the fire was to be

produc ed afresh by fric tion,or from certain

defin ite sour ces,an d placed upon the carefully purified

fire -place . Towards sun set the sacrifi c er invoked the godsan d an cestors thus : “Gods

,fathers

,fathers

,gods"I

sacrifice,being whom I am ; n either will I exclude him

whose I am ; min e own shall be the offering , min e own

the toiling,m in e own the sacrifice . He an d his wife

then en tered the respective houses,an d received with

various ceremon ies two pieces of wood specially prepai edfor reproducing the sacred fire the n ext mornmg. Theofferings which followed were chiefly of rice an d clarifiedbutter . Later the sacrifi c er

,having hon oured the priests

bywashing their feet an d giving them perfumes , etc ,an d

g1v en to each his share , invited them to eat . The S7

0ma

ceremony,acc 0 1 ding to the Brahman as , is still more de

v elOped b ut it is quite impossible to compress an accoun tof it in to a short Space .

Fasting.

THE UPANISHADS . 2 5

The Vedas an d the Brahman as in time proved in suffic1en t for se cur1ng the hold of the priestly class on the

people . The n ext great group of composition s The

w ere the Upan ishads or mystical doctrin e .

Upani shads.

Some of these are con tain ed in a class of writin gs supplemen tary to the Brahman as

,kn ow n as the Aranyakas , or

forest-books,

i n ten ded for those Brahman s who,after

RRAHMA,VISHNU , AND SIVA, FROM THE ELLORA CAYE S .

having performed all the duties of a studen t and a householder

,retired to the forest to spen d their remain in g days

in con templation . The word Upani shad is said by n ativeauthorities to mean to set ign oran ce at rest by

'

rev ealingthe kn owledge of the supreme spirit its real etym olo

gical mean ing is a session ,especially of pupils roun d a

6 THE EARLY VEDIC RELIGION

teacher . These books con sequen tly became the mostimportan t Vedic treatises for learn ed Hindus . Max Mullercon siders that although the Upan ishads are later than theBrahman as

,their germs already existed in the Rig-Veda ;

and the earliest of them,he says

,will always main tain

a place in the literature of the world among the mostastoun din g production s of the human min d ln any agean d in any coun try .

The Khandogya Upan ishad , which con tinues the succession “

of the Sama—Veda,is on e of the most importan t

The syllab le Hin du philosophical books . It begin s by the0m aston ishin g advice (to theWestern min d),

“Leta man meditate

,

” or as some tran slate it,

“Let a m an

‘worship ’ the syllable Om .” The real mean in g is,

first,

that by prolonged repetition of the syllable,the thoughts

should“

be drawn away from all other subj ects an d con

c en trated on the sub jects of which that syllable was thesymbol . It was the beginn ing of the Veda

,an d the

essen ce of it,the symbol of all Speech an d all life . Om

therefore rep1 e sen ted man’s physical and men tal powers

,

and especially the sspi1 it or livin g prin ciple , and this i s

iden tified later with the spirit in the sun or in n ature ;and the beginn ing of this Upan ishad teaches that n o

sacrifi ces,however perfectly performed , c an secure salva

t1on,while meditation on Om alon e

,or what is mean t

by it, will secure salvation or immortality . Fin ally thediscussion reaches the highest philosophical sub j ects . The

The orig mofdeclaration that the origi n of the world 1s ether

,

the world m “ for all beings take their rise from the ether,

etheran d return i n to the ether

,ether i s older thari

these,ether is their rest

,

” has a strikirig sign ifican ce whencompared with the sen timen ts an d speculation s of philosophers at the British Association i n 1888 . But thereis a furthe1 elevation of the ether

,which in cludes more

than the physical,for after defin ing Brahman as the

ortal with threefeet ln heaven,the Upan ishad says :

The Brahman i s the same as the ether which 1s aroun dus an d the ether which is aroun d us is the same as theether which is within us . An d the ether which is within ,

that is the ether within the heart . That ether in the

THE A TM AN OR SELF-EXIS TE JVT . 2 7

heart is omn ipresen t an d un changing . He who knows thisobtain s omnipresen t an d un changeable happin ess .”

The highest doctrin e of the Upan ishad,according to

Max Mfiller,is that the human

Brahman recogn isedThe Atman

his own Self or “At or Self

m an” as a mere

emstent.

limited reflection of the HighestSelf

,and aimed at kn owin g his

own Self in the Highest Self,

which may b e iden tified withthe Divin e Being

,the

TAb solute

,

ofWestern philosophers . Throughthat kn owledge he w as to returnto the Highes t On e an d to regainhis iden tity with it .

“Here tokn ow was to be

,to kn ow the

Atman was to b e the Atman,an d

the reward of that highest kn owledge after death was freedomfrom n ew births

,or immortality .

”

This Atman was also the sourceof all visible existen ce

,iden tical

with the Brahman an d the Sal,

the true an d real,which exists in

the beginn ing an d for ever,an d

gives rise to every kin d of existen ce . Although there is muchassociated with this philosophythat seems trivial or fan ciful

,it

con tain s the essen ce of pan theism ;modern philosophers fin d it hardto advan ce really further thanthe an cien t Hindus . There aremany referen ces to the sacrificesan d to particular gods

,an d it is

said that he who kn ows or meditates on the sacrifices as enjoin ed

,has his reward in

differen t worlds with the gods for certain periods of time,

till at last he reaches the true Brahman . In thi s state

FIGURE OF HINDU PRAYING .(m Temple at Madam .)

8 THE EA RLY VEDIC RELIGION.

he n either rises n or sets,he is alon e stan ding in the

cen tre ; to him who thus kn ows this doctrin e “ the sun

does n ot rise an d does n ot set . For him there is day,

on ce and for all .”

The meditation on the fi v e sen ses is on e of the most striking but the on e which follows must be quoted as expressing on e of the essen tial expos ition s of Brahman philosophy .

All this is Brahman . Let a man meditate on that(visible world) as beginn ing, en din g, an d breathing in it(the Brahman ) .“Now m an is a creature of will . According to what his

will is in this world,so will he be when he has departed

this life . Let him therefore have this will an d belief.“The in telligen t

,whose body is spirit

,whose form is

light,whose thoughts are true

,whose n ature is like ether

(omn ipres en t and invisible), from whom all works,all

desires,all sweet odours an d tastes proceed ; he who

embraces all this,who n ever speaks

,and is n ever sur

prised,

He is my self within the heart , smaller than a corn of

r1c e,smaller than a corn of barley

,smaller than a mustard

seed,smaller than a can ary seed

,or the kern el of a can ary

seed . He also is my self within the ‘heart,greater than

heaven,greater than all these worlds .

“He from w hom all works,all desires

,all sweet odours

an d tastes proceed,who embraces all thi s

,who n ever

speaks and who is n ever surprised,he

,my self

fi

w ithin

the heart,is that Brahman . When I shall have“ departed

from hen ce,I shall ob tain him (that Self) .

In t he Talav akara Upan ishad occurs the followingn otable passage : That which is n ot expressed by speechand by which speech is expressed

,that alon e kn ow as

Brahman,n ot that which people here adore : That which

does n ot think by mi n d, an d by which, they say , min dis thought : That which does n ot see by the eye

,and by

which on e sees the eyes : That which does n ot hear bythe ear

,and by which the ear is heard : That which does

n ot breathe by breath,an d by which breath is drawn

,

that alon e know as Brahman,n ot that which people here

adore .

” Thi s Upan ishad is asserted to rest on

THE S VE TA S VA TA RA . 29

pen an ce,restrain t

,_and sacrifice ; the Vedas are its

limbs,the True is its abode . He who kn ows this Hpan

ishad,and has shaken off all evil

,stan ds in the en dless

un con querable world of heaven .

”

The Sv etasvatara con tain s a more fully developeddoctrin e

,although it at times iden tifies the Brahman or

highest self with several of the low er divin i The Svete .

ties . It teaches the un ity of souls in the on e svatam o

and on ly self ; the un reality of the world as a series offigmen ts of the m ind

,as phen omen al on ly . There is n o

evolution of the Brahman ; he is absolute an d does n otdirectly create . He deputes that offi ce to Isv ara or Deva

,

the Lord,Brahman un der the semblan ce of a person al

creating an d govern ing god.

It is in teresting to compare the pan theism of thisUpan ishad with previous expression s . Thus

,

“I knowthat great Person of sun like lustre beyond the darkn ess .

A m an who kn ows him truly,passes over death ; there

is n o other path to go . This whole un iverse is filled bythis Person

,to whom there is n othing superior

,from

whom there is n othing differen t,than whom there is

n othing smaller or larger,who stan ds alon e fixed like a

tree in the sky . That which is beyon d this world iswithout form and without suffering . They who kn owit,become immortal

,b ut others suffer pain in deed .

Its hands an d feet are everywhere,its eyes an d head are

everywhere,its ears are everywhere

,it stan ds en com

passing all in’

the world . Separate from all the sen ses,

yet reflecting the qualities of all the sen ses,and it is the

lord an d ruler of all,it is the great refuge of all .”

Certain of the n arratives in ciden tally in troduced in tothe Upan ishads show a still further developmen t of whatis dimly visib le in the Rig-Veda

,and still more clearly

expressed in the Brahman as,n amely

,a struggle between

the good or bright gods (devas) an d the evil spirits . In

on e of these In dra , as chief of the devas,and Virokan a

,

chief of the evil spirits,are represen ted as seeking in

struction of Prajapati, as a supreme god . Prajapati said,

The self which is free from sin,free from old age

,from

death an d grief, from hunger an d thirst,which desires

30 THE EARL 1/ VEDIC‘ RELIGION.

n othing but what it ought to desire,an d imagin es n othing

but what it ought to imag1n e , that it is which we mustsearch out

,that it is which we must try to un derstan d .

”

The two seekers desire to realise that self,an d

are led on by successive stages of illusion,Virokan a being

e asily satisfied with the idea that the body is the self ;b ut In dra persists in inquiries

,an d fin ally learn s that the

real self is the kn ower or seer as distin ct from the min dor the eye as in strumen ts .An other Upan ishad in troduces in full ex pressmn the

doctrin e of tran smigration . The immortality of the SelfTrenemigre _ is taught, and that after death some are born“0 11 0 15 3 0 1113 again as living b ein gs

,some en ter in to stocks

an d s ton es . “He, the highest Person ,who wakes in us

while we are asleep,shaping on e lovely sight after an other

,

he in deed is called the Bright,he is called Brahman .

There 1s on e etern al thinker,thinking n on - etern al

thoughts ; he , though on e,fulfils the desires of many .

The wise who perceiv e him within their Self,to

“

thembelongs etern al peace . He

,the Brahman

,can n ot

be reached by speech,by min d

,or s by the eye . He

cann ot be apprehen ded,except by him who says : He is .

When all desires that dwell in the heart cease,then the

mortal becomes Immortal,an d obtain s Brahman .

Max Muller sums up the purpose of the Upan ishads asbein g “to show the utter uselessn ess

,n ay the mischievous

Purpose ofn ess of all ritual performan ces ; to con demn

t he every sacrificial act which has_

for its motive aUpamsmds ‘ desire or hope

“

of reward ; to deny, if n ot theexisten ce

,at ‘ least the exception al an d exalted character

of the devas,and to teach that there is n o hope of salvation

an d deliveran ce,except by the in dividual self recogn ising

the true and un iversal Self,and fin ding rest there

,where

alon e rest can b e found .

”

So worked the" human min d in In dia thousan ds of yearsago , an d produced t hese books of wisdom ,

believed to b e

directly revealed,mixed with much that is childish ; so

grew that highly artificial sacerdotal system by whichthe Brahman s gain ed that supremacy in In dia whichthey have n ever wholly lost .

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3 2 THE BRAHM ANISM OF THE CODE S .

the revealed truth an d the laws of ceremon ial,and we

have these 1n the form of Sutr,

as or collection sof aphorisms tersely givin g the most n eedful

in formation ; an d these were composed by differen tauthors for differen t Brahman ical families

,an d are exceed;

ingly numerous . They are based upon the Vedas and

the subsequen t Brahman as,and exhibit many of the

peculiarities of the Vedic language . They give us forthe first time a full accoun t of the castes

,composed at a

time con temporan eous with the rise an d spread of B ud

dhism .

Dur ing the same period,probably abou t 500 D .C .

,there

arose,con temporary with Buddha

,a number of ration alist

Rationalist philosophers ,who ,while accepting the authorityphilosophers. of the Vedas an d the supremacy of the Brahman s

,speculated freely on question s of philosophy an d

the moral governmen t of the un iverse . Fin ally thesewere arranged in six main systems of teaching

,some

times called the six Shastras ..

Which of these is the ,

The six earlier cann ot yet be con sidered settled. ButShastras

a great deal is common to most of the systems,

an d , is still held by the majority of educated Hin dus .Such articles of common belief are : the etern ity of theCommon soul

,, both the supreme soul or Brahman an d

tenets the individual soul or Atman ; the etern ity of

matter,or that substan ce out of which the un iverse is

evolved,that the soul can on ly exercise thought an d

will when in v ested with some bodily form and join ed tomin d

,and has in successive ages become man ifest as

Brahma,Vishnu

,Siva

,etc .

,an d in the form of m en ;

that the un ion of the soul with the body is a bon dage,

an d in the case of m en produces misery ; that couse

quen c es in evitably follow acts , whether good or bad , andthese “ are partly suffered in heaven or hell

,and partly

have to be worked out through con tinual tran smigrati’on sof the soul in varied an imal , material , or higher forms ;that this tran smigration is the ex plan ation of all evil

,

b ut the soul bears the con sequen ces of its own acts on ly,

though these may have taken place in an in con ceivablenumber of past existen ces

,n ot recollected ; and fin ally

The Sutras .

THE S AIVR'

H YA PHILOS OPH Y. 33

that the great aim of philosophy is to produce in differen cein thought

,feeling and action

,an d to en able the in

dividual to return to the con dition of simple soul .The tersen ess of these “ Sutra philosophies may be illus

trated from the Nyaya of Gautama (a philosopher distin ctfrom the great Buddha) . Deliveran ce from the HOW to

misery of repeated births is to be thus at attain eman

tain ed : “Misery,birth

,activity

,fault

,false “paw n

n otion s ; on the removal of these i n turn (beginn in g withthe last) , tthere i s the removal also of that whi ch precedesit ; then en sues fin al eman cipation . A Hin ducommen t on this is as follows : “From false n otion s proc eed partiality an d prejudice

,then ce come the faults of

detraction,envy

,delusion

,in toxication

,pride

,avarice

Acting with a body,a person commits injury

,theft

,an d

un lawful sen sualities— becomes false,harsh

,an d slan de1

ous . This vicious activity produces demerit . But to doacts of charity

,ben evolen ce

,an d service with the body ;

to be truthfu l,useful

,agreeable in speech

,or given to

repetition of the Veda ; to be kin d , disin terested , an d

reveren tial—“ these produce merit . Hen ce merit and

demerit are fostered by activity . This activity Banefulness

is the cause of vile as well as hon ourable births . Of aCtiVitY

Atten dan t on birth is pain . That comprises the feelingof distress

,trouble

,di sease an d sorrow . Eman cipation is

the cessation of all these . What in telligen t person willn ot desire eman cipation from all pain ?This system

,with its supplemen t

,the Vaiseshika

,

teaches the etern ity of material atoms,an d also of the

supreme Soul and of in dividual souls . The The Sankhya,Sankhya philosophy is still m0 1 e positive on Philosophy

these poin ts,

an d says : “There cann ot b e the production of something out of n othin g ; that which is n otcann ot be developed in to that which is .

” It recogn isesthat there is a being or essen ce which evolves or produces everything else

,together with Souls whi ch n either

produce n or' are produced

,b ut become un ited with the

w orld- evolver in varied degrees . The developmen t of

these ideas in later Hin du theology an d philosophy willbe referred to hereafter.

4 THE BRAHMANISM OF THE CODES .

The Yoga philosophy is the foundation of much of theasceticism of the Hin du . It directly ackn owledges thesupreme Being, and aims at teachin g the human soul toThe Yoga, attain perfect un ion with the supreme Soul .PhflOSOPhY In it we have the fuller developmen t of theb en efits of con templating the syllable Om

,the symbol

of the deity . Men tal con cen tration is facilitated bybodily restrain t and postures

,religious Observan ces

,sup

pression of the breath,restrain t of the sen ses

,etc .

,and

by these in their varied forms,the devotee is supposed to

attain un ion with the supreme Being,even in the presen t

life .

The remain ing chief systems of philosophy,the J aim in i

and the Vedan ta,are main ly con cern ed with ritual . The

former may be said to have made a god of ritual,an d

appealed to the Veda as infallib le . The Vedan ta professesto be based upon the Upan ishads an d their pan theism .

Much of the ceremon ial of the Hin dus was also veryearly con den sed in Sutra form

,an d every school had its

own form . Several of these,preceding the celebrated ,

l aws of Manu,have come down to us . They

are a kin d of manual composed by the Vedicteachers for use in their respective schools

,an d on ly later

put forward as bin ding on Aryan s gen erally . The “IhGautama’

s stitut es off

the Sacred Law,

” ascribed toInstitutes Gautama

,begin s by ackn owledging the Veda

as the source of the sacred law,and proceeds to fix the

period an d mode of in itiation of a Brahman,and the

rites of purification after touching impure things . Hereis a specimen of these rites . 1

“Turn ing his face to the east or to the n orth,he shall

purify himself from person al defilem en t . Seated in aR ites of _pure place , placing his right arm between his

purifi cation . kn ees,arran gin g his dr ess (or hi s sacrificial

cord) in the mann er required for a sacrifice to the gods ,he shall

,after washing his hands up to the wrist three

or four times,silen tly , sip water that reaches his heart,

twice wipe his lips,sprinkle his feet and his head , touch

the cavity in the head with his right hand,and place it

on the crown of his head and on his n avel .”

Early rituals.

KINGS . 35

S tuden ts of the Vedas had to study each for twelv eyears

,b ut might 1 estrict their study to on e Veda on ly .

After the Veda had been studied,he might The Tom.

choose which order of Brahman s he would orders of

en ter ; that of the studen t the householder, theBram ans’

ascetic,or the hermit in the woods . The ascetic was re

quired to live by alms,to restrain every desire

,

and main tain an attitude of in differen ce towardsall creatures

,whether they did him an injury or kindn ess .

The herm it was to live in the forest,and subsist on roots

and fruits,practisin g austerities . He was to

worship gods,man es (an cestor worship) , m en

,

goblin s,and Rishis (great Vedic teachers) . He must n ot

en ter a village,n or step on ploughed land ; his dress

must be made of bark an d skin s .

For the householder,marriage an d its rites are of the

utmost importan ce,an d full direction s are given as to

the choice of a wife an d the ceremon ies atten d The house

ing m arriage,which vary according to the holder s

kin d of marri age . The offspring of marriages dunes

with other castes give rise i n each case to a distin ct caste .

Complex domestic ceremon ies are p1 escrib ed, with offerings to the deities presiding over the eight poin ts of thehorizon

,at the doors of the house to the Maruts

,to the

deities of the dwelling in side the house,to Brahman in

the cen tre of the house,to the Waters n ear the water pot

,

to the Ether in the air,an d in the even ing to the beings

walking about at n ight . A kin dly courtesy is shown inthe direction that a householder before he eats shall feedhis guests

,infan ts

,sick people an d women

,aged m en

,

and those of low con dition . A Brahman is allowed toearn his livin g by varied occupation s in times of distressb ut he is forbidden to sell a great many specified kin ds ofgoods .The authority of kings is upheld in Gautama’s In sti

tutes,b ut at the same time high privileges are deman ded

for Brahman s,who

,if

"

of high rank and religious character

,must n ot be corporally puni shed

,

imprison ed,

fin ed,exiled

,or reviled . Truth- speaking and

the ascertainmen t of truth are strongly in culcated

The ascetic.

The hermit.

36 THE B RAHIITANISM OF THE CODES .

On e of the most curious chapters in these In stitutesdetails a mu ltitude of circumstan ces in which the Veda is

When the n ot to be recited,as

,for in stan ce

,if the win d

Veda is not to whirls up the dust in the daytime , or if it isb e “ Cited audible at n ight

,if the barking of many dogs

and jackals or the brayin g of many donkeys i s heard,

when the reciter is rid1ng i n a carri age or on beasts ofburden

,in a burial groun d

,in the extremity of a village

,

when it thun ders an d ra1n s,etc .

,etc . Equally curious

are the particulars of the gifts which may be acceptedVenous from twice born person s e .

,pure Aryan s). If

restrictions the mean s of subsisten ce cann o t be otherwiseobtain ed

,it may be accepted from a Sudra (on e of the

slave or subject races) . A householder may n ot eat foodin to which a hair or an in sect has fallen

,n or what has

been smelt at by a cow,n or what has been cooked twice

,

n or what has been given by various people of bad character performing low o ffices . The classes of an imals thatmay n ot be eaten remin d on e of the ceremon ial restriction s of Leviticus ; but in fact the prin ciple of tabooingcertain things to those who belong to a higher or selectorder is foun d in many parts of the world . The milk of

sheep,camels

,and 'en tire-hoofed an imals was forbidden

to the Brahman s . Five- toed an imals were n ot to bee aten

,except the porcupin e

,the hare

,the boar

,the

iguan a,the rhin oceros

,and the tortoise ; n or an imals

with a double row of teeth,those covered with an excess

of hair,those with n o hair

,en tire-hoofed an imals

,and

indeed whole groups o f creatures .Women were enjoin ed to fulfil their duty to their

husban ds strictly,an d restrain their tongues

,eyes

,and

The duty of action s , yet much that Christian s would revoltw omen again st is declared lawful and right for her todo . Early betrothals are enjoin ed . The er1mes for whicha man becomes an outcast are very varied

,in cludin g

murder and many crimes again st Brahman s , and associ ation with outcasts ; thus boycotting is almostas old as Brahmariism

,if n ot older . To be

an outcast ,” says Gautama

,

“mean s to be deprived of the

right to follow the lawful occupation s of twice-born men,

Outcasts.

THE LAWS OF MANU. 37

an d to be deprived after death of the rewards of meritorious deeds .Numerous an d severe pen an ces for various offen ces are

enjoin ed . He who has killed a Brahman must penances andemaciate himself an d thr ice thr ow himself in to Penalties

a fire,or remain ing chaste he may

,durin g twelve years

,

en ter the village on ly for the purpose of beggin g,carry

ing the foot of a beds tead an d a skull in his han d,and

proclaiming his deed ; thus stan din g by day , sitting atn ight

,an d bathing thrice a day ,

he may be purified intwelve years

,or by saving the life of a Brahman . It

is most striking how vigorously the Brahman literaturemain tain s the san ctity and inviolability of its priests

,an d

claims to exert throughout the life of the Aryan s aminute authority scarcely paralleled by the Church of

Rome . Some of the severest pen alties are those infi ictedfor touching spirituous liquor . Thus “ they shall pourhot spirituous liquor in to the mouth of a Brahman whohas drunk such “

liquor ; he will be purified after death .

”

Severe secret pen an ces are enjoin ed on those whose sin sare n ot publicly kn own . It is n ot to be supposed thatthe worship of the gods is in ten tion ally lowered by theseregulation s ; b ut the very great importan ce assumed byceremon ial Observan ces an d pen an ces n aturally ten ded tolower the dign ity of the gods an d raise that of theBrahman s . It is n ot won derful

,therefore

,that Buddhism

should have arisen .

THE LAWS OF MANU.

We have n ot space to compare this lawbook w ith lateron es which bear the n ames of Vasishtha

,B audhayan a,

an d Apastam b a, or to give an accoun t of the

Grihya Sutras or books specially on domesticceremon ies ; b ut must pass on to the celebrated Lawsof Manu a metrical version of the whole Brahman icalscheme

,dating

,according to some authorities

,from the

fifth cen tury no ; b ut Prof. Buhler does n ot con sider itcertain that it existed in its presen t form earlier thanthe begin n ing of the secon d cen tury A .D .

,though un

doubtedly it is derived from earlier version s con tain ing

Date.

38 THE BRAHM'

ANISM OF THE CODE S .

HINDU RELIGIOUS MENDICANT .

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0 THE BRAHIWANISM OF THE CODES .

powers of the king an d of the admin istration of justice,

and an other was its gen eral relation an d suitability toall Aryan s

,whatever their caste. Their authority was

clen ched and upheld by their being given out as the workofManu

,the typical m an

,the ofi

’

spring of the self- existen tBrahman

,and con sequen tly of double n ature

,divin e an d

human . Hen ce he was invoked as Lord of created beings,

an d even as iden tical with Brahman,the supreme Soul.

In the B ig-Veda he is frequen tly termed Father Mann ,

an d it is stated that “ the five tribes ” or “ the races ofm en

” are his offspring . We have already referred tothe legen d in the Satapatha-brahman a in which Manu issaid to have been saved from a great flood which destroyed all other creatures . He thus n aturally represen tssocial and moral order

,an d is the type of the temporal

ru ler,the in spired teacher an d the priest combin ed . In

many passages of the Rig-Veda hi s sacrifices are m en

tioned and the gods are begged to accept the offerings ofthe pr1ests as they accepted those of Manu .

That writing was kn own an d in con siderable use whenthe Laws of Manu were compiled

,is eviden t from several

passages,an d also from the complex tran slation s which

are m en tion ed,whi ch wou ld have been impossible with

out w riting. The number of archaic phrases an d theprimi tive customs described show that i t i s based on

earlier works ; an d by careful study a very good idea of

its developmen t may be formedIn givmg some accoun t of the Laws of Manu an en

deav our will be made to dwell prin cipally upon ttheir re

n hligious aspect , but it 1s difficult for theWestern

religious min d to realise the exten t to which every detail1119311

of a Hin du ’s life an d con duct i s conn ected withan d supported by his religious belief. In fact the Christianideal

,that the whole life should be religious , has lon g

been practised by a vast number of Hin dus,although the

form,basis

,and n ature of the religion s differ so widely .

The assen t of the heart is the inn er san ction of the

Se1f_repres_Hin du law

,supported by the authority of

sion incul Manu,the Veda

,the Vedi c teachers

,and the

cu ed' customs of holy m en . The desire of rewards is

THE GODS IIV M AN D. 4 1

declared to be n ot laudable in itself,b ut it is recogn ised

and utilised ; an d the man who discharges hi s prescribedduties is promised the attainmen t of the deathless state

,

an d even in this life the realisation of all his desires .

How completely the system was directed to self-rep1 essienan d the production of passivity in this life may be seenby this verse 1 “That man may be con sidered to havereally subdued his organ s

,who

,on hearing and touching

an d seeing,or tasting an d sm elling anything

,n either re~

joices n ore repin es . The privilege of being

Study of

in structed i n the Veda i s strictly fen ced in,b ut the Veda

the limitation s may be relaxed by presen ts of 3“ pflm ege'

mon ey . Even in times of dire distress,however

,a Vedic

teacher was rather to die with his kn owledge than sow itin barren soil . The Brahman un learn ed in the Veda isstigmatised as useless, like a wooden elephan t, havin gn othing b ut the n ame in common with his kin d . TheVeda is

,indeed

,extolled to a position which is on ly

rivalled by those whom some have called Bibliolaters .

Thus we read that the Veda is the etern al eye of the

man es g,ods and m en

, an d beyon d human comprehen sion .

Everything n ot fourided on it i s foun ded 0 11 darkn ess,

and produces n o reward after death,the etern al lore of

the Veda upholds all created beings . He on ly who kn owsthe Veda deserves royal authority

,the offi ce of a judge

,

the comman d of armies . By kn owledge of the Veda thetain t arising from evil acts is burn t out of the soul . A

’

Brahman who retain s the Rig-Veda in his memory is n ot

stain ed by guilt,though he may have destroyed the three

worlds . Study of the Upan ishads is men tion ed as n ec es

sary to the attainmen t of un ion with the supreme Sou l .A s to the gods other than this un iversal Spirit or Soul

,

they scarcely go beyon d the lists already given in theVedic period

,such as In dra

,Surya

,the Maruts

, The gods in

Yama,Varun a

,Agn i

,etc .

,whose en ergetic manu

action the king is to emulate,b ut they appear to occupy

a very moderate place in the scheme,the Supreme Spii it

and the Brahman ic ri tes being chief. In deed,there i s a

man ifest lean ing towards pan theism,it being frequen tly

declared that everything proceeds from Brahma the un i

42 THE BRAHM ANISM OF THE CODE S .

versal Soul,and will ultimately be absorbed on ce more

in the same . The whole philosophy is affected by theNew b irths doctrin e of tran smigration of sou ls

,n ew births

and 119113 in the same or a lower order of creation or inhells being the result of evil con duct

,an d absorption in

the Supreme Soul being the gran d result of the greatestmerit . The hells described

,though terrible

,are con

sequen tly on ly temporary . Am ong the tormen ts are

“being devoured by raven s an d owls , the heat of scorching san d , being boiled in jars ,

” etc . Altogether,theology

is largely absen t from Manu . But it must be remembered that the con stan t study of the Veda is everywherein culcated . There is scarcely any referen ce to publicworship or to temples ; and from its whole ton e we seehow the family was the keyston e of the Brahman ic re

ligion . The influen ce of the Brahman s over the domesticlife of the people was profoun d and sufficien t at the timewhen the code of Manu was composed .

The origin al castes are stated to be four,the Brahman

,

the Kshatriya or warrior,the Vaisya (cultivator), an d the

Duties of the Sudra or servan t ; and (as in the ten th book of“W the Rig-Veda) they origin ated respectively fromthe mouth

,arms

,thighs

,and feet of Brahma

,who assign ed

them their separate duties . To Brahman s he assign edteachin g and studying the Veda

,sacrificing for their own

ben efit an d for others , and givin g an d accepting of alms ;to Kshatriyas the protection of the people

,the bestowal of

gifts,the offerin g of sacrifices

,the study of the Veda

,and

abstin en ce from sen sual pleasures to the Vaisyas ten dingcattle

,the b estowal'of gifts

,the offering of sacrifices

,the

study of the Veda , tradin g, len din g mon ey , and the cultivation of land ; to the Sudras simply to serve the other three .

The Brahman caste is exalted far above the others,

having sprung from the mouth of Brahma,

_being the

Lefty claims first—born

,the preserver of the Veda

,and havmg

of the the right of expoun ding it . 4“What created

Brahmans' being can surpass him ,through whose mouth

the gods con tinually con sume the sacrificial vian ds and

the offerings to the dead ? ” The most distinguishedBrahman is he who fully performs his duty and kn ows

LOFT Y CLAIIITS OF THE ERAHfl/ANS . 43

the Brahman ; he in fact becomes on e with Brahma thecreator. The most extravagan t claims of lordship overall creatures

,of possession of everything

,are

“

made on hisbehalf. In fact

,n ot on ly is everything bestowed upon

him,his own already

,b ut other mortals are stated to owe

their subsisten ce to the ben evolen ce of the Brahman s . In

some passages of Manu a Brahman is even lifted to therank of a divin ity

,whether he were ign oran t or learn ed

,

an d even if he were occupied in a mean occupation . A

Brahman who studies Man n an d faithfully performs hisduties is said to be n ever tain ted by sin s of thought

,word

,

or deed,an d to san ctify any company he may en ter

,

together with seven an cestors an d seven descen dan ts .Surely more arrogan t self-assertion was n ever advan cedan d admitted than by these Brahman s . The king iswarn ed n ot to provoke them to an ger

,for it is asserted

that they could in stan tly destroy him an d hi s army,by

their power over all creation,an d by the utteran ce of

magic texts .’

Yet,in con sisten tly en ough

,it is allowed

that just as Kshatriyas can n ot prosper without Brahman s,

so Brahman s cann ot prosper without Kshatriyas . Theirperson s are declared inviolable

,an d the crime of threaten

ing a Brahman with a stick wil l be pun ished in hell fora hun dred years

,while the actual striker of a Brahman

will remain in hell a thousan d years . Still more ex trav agan t is this further threat : “As many particles of dustas the blood of a Brahman causes to coagulate

,for so

many thou san d years shall the shedder of that bloodrem ain in hell .” This system could of course on ly bemain tain ed by the receipt of heavy fees . The repetition sof the Veda an d the perform an ce of the sacrifices weremade to depen d upon the gifts to the officiating Brahman s .

No taxes were to be paid by them ; and any kin g whosuffered a learn ed Brahman to die of hunger would havehis kingdom afflicted by famin e

,while the meritorious

acts of any Brahman whom he protected would in creasethe king’s wealth

,length of life

,an d kingdom . Yet

,if,

after all these in jun ction s,a Brahman failed to receive

proper patron age an d support,he might become a soldier

,

a cultivator,or a trader .

44 THE BRAHJ IANISAI OF THE CODE S .

We mus t give some further detail of the Brahman ’slife an d course of study ; for although it on ly partially

The Tom. applies to the other classes of Hin dus,it repre

periods of l i fe sen ts that ideal which they con tinually lookedThe Student up to and revered

,an d i s as characteristic of

Hin du religious life as that of the clergyman of the presen tday is of our own . We cann ot fail to be aston ished atthe lengthy studen t period which the Brahman must gothrough . Studen tship might last for n in e

,eighteen

,or

thirty—six years , or even for the whole of life . The mostimportan t of the numerous prelimin ary rites was the

investiture with the sacred cord or sacrificial string,which

must be of three threads of cotton,twisted to the right

,

and worn over the left shoulder and across the body tothe right hip . The ceremony commen ced with takinga staff as tall as the pupil

,an d worshippin g the sun while

stan din g and Walking roun d the sacred fire,after which

he begged alms an d food in succession of each personpresen t

~

according to a fixed order . After havin g eaten,

an d purified himself with water,a series of formalities

is required before the teacher begin s to in struct his pupilin the Veda

,the syllable Om bein g always pron oun ced at

the beginn ing an d en d of a lesson . On ce in itiated r,egular

bathing,with libation s of water to the gods

,the in spired

Rishi s,an d deceased an cestors , is requ ired of the Brahman

studen t,an d he must reveren ce the deities (explain ed

later to mean,

“worship the images of the an d

place fuel on the sacred fire . He must live a chaste life,

refrain from meat and all sen suality,from dan cing

,sing

ing,an d playing musical i n st

,rumen ts must n ever inj ure

any living creature , must n ot wear slic es or use an umbrella

,an

o

d must refrain from anger,covetousn ess

,idle

disputes,an d gambling . The regulation s for e securing

reveren t behaviour towards the teacher are very elaborate ,an d paren ts and elders gen erally are to be highly re

garded . It is declared that the trouble an d pain whichparen ts undergo on the birth of their children cann ot becompen sated even in a hundred years

,an d ob edien ce to

them an d to the teacher are the best forms of austerity ;the son must rejoice to do what i s agreeable an d ben eficial

HIIVD U S UTTEE . 45

to them by hon ouring them thethree worlds are gain ed 4

HINDU SUTTEE (SAT I) , on THE SELF -IMM OLATION or A WIDOW.

for him who honours them n ot,all rites are fruitless .

46 THE BRAHM ANISM OF THE CODE S .

Somewhat surprisingly,in the midst of these stringen t

regulation s we come upon the follow ing liberal sen tiSeme hhere l men ts :

“He who possesses faith may receivesentiments. pure learn ing even fi om a m an of lower caste

,

an d an excellen t wife even from a base family .

”

“Even from poison n ectar may be taken,even from a

child good advice,even from a foe a lesson in good

con duct,an d even from an impure substan ce gold .

“Excellen t wives,learn ing

,the kn owledge of the law

,

the rules of purity,good adv ice

,and vari ous arts may be

acquired from anybody .

Fin ally,the Brahman who has n ot

‘

b roken hi s v ow

during his studen t stage is promised after death the

highest abode,and that he - will n ot be born again in

thi s world .

The stage of a householder bein g at length reached,

the Brahman must marry a wife of equal caste,free from

The bodily defects and having various good qualihousehomero ties ; b ut polygamy is allowed though n ot re

commen ded,and when the first wife is on e of equal caste

,

an other wife may be taken from each of the in feriorcastes . Eight differen t forms

_

of m ari iage , four laudableand four blamable

,the chief diffe1 en c es bein g in the

matter of dowry and atten dan t circumstan ces,the highest

rank being accorded to a marriage where the paren t of

the bride offers her with costly garmen ts and jewels toa learn ed Brahman ; the son of such a wife is said toliberate from sin ten an cestors and ten descendan ts ifhe does meritorious works .

The‘

Brahman householder had to perform daily fiv e

chief rites : (1) muttering the Veda , (2 ) offering waterThe chief and food to an cestors

, (8) a burn t offering todaily rites the gods

, (4) an offering to all creatures , iiieluding aged paren ts

,good and evil spirits

,con sisting of

the scattering of ri ce grain s on the housetop or outsideSeem-

lees for the door ; (5) an offering to m en,con sisting of

the dead' hospitable reception of (Brahman ) guests . Thislast was n aturally con sidered of great importan ce

,as it

afforded the chief mean s of support to the studen ts,

ascetics,and hermits . Sacrifices for the dead were re

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8 THE B RAHJ TANJSAJ OF THE CODE S .

widows (Sati The re -marriage of widows is men tion ed,

b ut with cen sure,and a widow who remain s chaste is

rewarded with heaven . Very early marriage of gi1 lswas permitted if a suitor was distinguished and handsome .

Householders are enjoin ed to be liberal in gifts . If

he is asked, let him always give something,be

'

it everso little

,without grudgin g ; the giver re

c eiv es correspon ding rewards,either in worldly

prosperity or in future existen ces , Truthfuln ess 1s highlyrecommen ded :

“he who is di shon est in speech 18 dishon est in everything .

” Givin g n o pain to any creature ,the householder i s to slowly accumulate spiritual merit

,

Spiritual the on ly lasting compan ion .

“ Single is eac limerit being born single it dies single it en joys the

reward of its virtue ; single it suffers the pun ishmen t ofits sin . He who is perseverin g

,gen tle

,and patien t

,

shun s the company of m en of cruel con duct,an d does

n o 1n j ury to living creatures , gain s , if he con stan tly livesin that mann er , heaven ly bliss .

”

The hermit an d asceti c periods of life were held up toBrahman s as the culmin ation of their ex 1sten ce . We doThe hermi t n ot kn ow how many Brahman s wen t throughin the forest"thi s disciplin e ; but it is recommen ded to thehouseholder

,that when his skin becomes wrinkled and

his hair grey,and he has gran dchildren

,he should go

an d live in the forest,taking with him the sacred fire

an d implemen ts - for the domestic sacrifices which he ' isstill to perform

,and there live in con trol of his sen ses

,

wearing his hair in braids,and the beard an d n ails un

clipped . He was still to recite the Veda , and to be patien tof hardships

,frien dly towards all

,of collected min d

,com

passi on ate to all living creatures . He must feed on ly on

special kin ds of vegetables . A con siderable n umber of

austerities are en join ed on him,in cluding exposure to

fires in summer,living under the open sky an d clothed

in wet garmen ts in win ter,with other performan ces con

Gifts.

1 Sati m ean s,

“she who is faithful

,

”an d is a fem in in e form of the

roo t seen in“sooth

”z truth.

THE BRAHMAN ’S S UPERIORZT Y. 49

duciv e to short life,much study n ot being forgotten .

Fm ally he may,subsisting on ly on water an d air

,walk

straight on “,un til hi s body sinks to rest ” then

,having

got rid of his body,he is exalted in the world of Brahma

,

free from sorrow an d fear .The forest dweller who has n ot foun d liberation may

become a mendican t ascetic,absolutely silen t

,carin g for

n o enjoymen t,in differen t to everything

,b ut The meh di

con cen trating his min d on Brahma . Let him cant ascetifh

n ot desire to live,let him n ot desire to die let him wait

for his appoin ted time as a servan t waits for the paymen t of his wages .” “Let him patien tly bear hardwords

,let him n ot in sult anybody

,and let him not b e

com e anybody’s en emy . Again st an angry m an

let him not in return show anger,let him bless where

he is cursed .

” These are on ly a few of the numerousprecepts for promoting the high spiritual life of theascetic . Meditation

,self- repression

,equability

,con ten t

men t,forgiven ess

,hon esty

,truthfuln ess

,absten tion from

anger,purification

,etc .

— these may be said to sum upthe moral law for all Brahman s .We can on ly lightly dwell on the duties of a king and

of governmen t as described in Manu . The king re

presen ts Agn i an d Indra,the Maruts

,Varun a

, The duties

Yama an d other gods,out of all of whom he is Of a king

supposed to be framed ; thus he is“ a great deity in

human form . He has divin e authority,is to protect all

creatures,and be an in carn ation of the law . He must

have seven or eight min isters,the chief of whom must

be a Brahman . Pun ishmen t is his chief in strumen t,in

deed the on ly main tain er of the law . He is, The

however,to be obedien t to the Brahman s

,and Brahman ’

s

be determin ed n ot to retreat in battle . The supem my

Brahman s are to be the j udges , either by themselves , oras assistan ts to the king . The crimin al code is markedby much severity

,and n ot a little in con sisten cy. Offen ces

by the low-born again st the higher classes were veryseverely pun ished

,often with great cruelty ; while Brah

man s were very len ien tly treated . A Brahman ’s life wasnot to be taken

,however grave or numerous his crimes .

50 TH'

E BRAHM ANJS/lf OF THE CODES .

Among mortal sin s are : killing a Brahman,drinking

spirituous liquor,stealin g the gold of a Brah

m an,adultery with a Guru ’s ( spiritual teacher

’s)wife , associat ing with those who did those things , falselyattributin g to on eself high birth

,falsely accusin g on e ’s

teacher,forgetting or reviling the Vedas

,slayin g a frien d

,

giving false eviden ce,stealing a deposit

,in cest an d forni

cation ; b ut the classification and pun ishm en ts show aPun ishment, very crude estimate of their relative importand p enances o an ce . Many pun ishm en ts are design ed apen an ces

,to remove the guilt of the offen der . Various

ordeals are prescribed to ascertain if a witn ess speaksthe truth

,such as fire an d water . Altogether

,the rules

of eviden ce do n ot 1n Sp1re us with the idea that the earlyBrahman s had inven ted very excell en t machin ery for disFalsehood covering truth ; an d such statemen ts as theexcused following are n ot calculated to show them in a

favourable light . In some cases a man who,though

knowmg the facts to b e difi'

eren t,gives false eviden ce

from a pious 1motive,does n ot lose heaven . When ever

the death of a Sudra,a Vaisya

,a Kshatriya

,or of a

Brahman would be caused by the declaration of the truth,

a falsehood may be spoken . In cases of violence,of theft

an d adultery, of defamation an d assault,the judge must

n ot examin e witn esses too strictly . But he is to exhortall witn esses to speak the truth

,promising them bliss

after death an d fame here below,while false witn esses

are firmly boun d by Varun a and are helpless during on e

hun dred existen ces .Reverting on ce more to the question of castes

,we may

n ote that the Brahman was supposed to have three births ;the first his n atural birth

,the secon d his in

vestiture with the girdle of Munga grass,the

third his in itiation to perform the greater sacrifices ; theKshatriyas or warriors

,an d the Vaisyas or

‘

cultivators,

were on ly twice born,the secon d birth happen ing

their investiture with the sacred thread . We may recallhere that the term caste is n ot an origin al Hin du or evenan an cien t word . It is believed to be an adaptation of a

Portuguese word,casta

,race or family

,from the Latin

Crimes.

Caste.

52 THE BRATM TANJ SM OF THE CODES .

casing,pure . The word used in Manu 1s 29011

1

7251,or colour

,

while in later Hin du phrase caste is den oted by j az‘

i or

j at, mean ing b irth .

The code of Manu was forced to recogn ise that widedepartures took place from the origin al purity of caste

,

Grewth ef

'

although main tain ing that on ly those born of1 miXed castes o wedded wives of equal castes were to be con

sidered as belonging to the same caste as their fathers .Hen ce distin ct n ames were given to the offspring betweenthe differen t castes ; some of these are declared to beferocious in mann ers and delighting in cruelty . Thesehad already been ’ assign ed to distinct occupati on s

,which

in creased as the Hin du life grew more settled an d diversifi ed. Some of them are said to be inheren tly fit on ly forlow an d degrading offi ces

,an d unworthy to receive the

sacramen tal rites . The modern developmen t of the castesystem must be dealt with later .

Fin ally,as to the importan t belief in the tran smigration

of souls,which in the Hin du system plays so large a part

,

Trenemigre it appears to have been wielded by the Braht ion of SOUllS-m an s very much as a mode of in fluen cingaction s on earth . Evil action s don e with the body wereto be pun ished by being born n ext in somethin g in

an imate,those don e by Speech were followed by birth as

a bird or a beast,while sin s of the min d

,such as covetous

ness,evil thoughts

,and adheren ce to false doctrines , led

to re -birth in a,

low caste . Self- control in all these respectsled to eman cipation from all births and fin al blessedn ess .Thi s scheme is elaborated in great detail

,many grada

tion s b eing fixed in descen ding order,each the just

recompen se for some fault . The specific reason for manyof these cann ot be imagin ed

,although some are in tel

ligible en ough,such as these : “men who delight in doing

injury become carnivorous an imals ; thieves , creaturescon sumin g the1r own kin d ; for stealing grain a man

becomes a rat,for stealing meat

,a vulture

,

” etc . Sen sualmen are said to suffer in a succession of dreadful hells andagon izing births

,slavery

,imprisonmen t in fetters . The

last pages of Manu are devoted to further”

glorification of

Brahman s who do their duty,an d to the extollin g of the

THE BRAHM ANJS /lf OF THE CODE S .

Manu,will be always virtuous in conduct

,and will reach

whatever con dition he desires .”

It must be own ed that the system thus developed inEffi cacy of Manu does n ot fail for lack of pen alties or ofthe COde precise direction s . Its efficacy is to be sought

in its gradual growth,its accordan ce with the ideas

of creation,supreme power , an d morality which had

lon g been curren t,and its promulgation by those who

had most in tellectual power an d most capability of swaying the con duct of men . Thus we may imagin e theextraordin ary influen ce which the sacred class of Brahman s attain ed 1n e arly Indian history

,an influen ce which

has been sufficien t to perpetuate itself to our own times,

which remain s very great,and which more than two .

thousan d years ago was Sufficien t to produce by ex aggera

tion an d reaction the remarkable religion of Buddhism .

But looking on it calmly,while admitting the loftiness

of many of its precepts an d 1magin 1ngs , it cann ot be saidthat i ts gen eral moral elevation was great . The schemewas powerful en ough to bin d together soci ety for cen turies

,

but n ot powerful en ough to diffuse itself widely amongother races

,or to become more than a Hin du religion .

There is on e other code to which we must refer,besides

that ofManu,n amely the Darma Shastra of Yajn avalkya ,

Code of possibly dating from the first cen tury AD

Yalnavalkya It is still the chief authority ln the school ofBen ares . It is much shorter than th at of Manu , is moresystematic

,an d represen ts a later stage of developmen t .

It adds to the sources of authority the Puran as and

various tradition al an d scholastic authorities . To someexten t caste is carr1ed farther

,an d a Brahman is for

bidden to have a Sudra as a fourth wife . We havereached a period when writing is in regular use

,an d

written documen ts are appealed to as legal eviden ce ;coin ed mon ey is m use . It is eviden t that Buddhismhas arisen

,an d that the shaven heads an d yellow gar

men ts of its votaries are well kn own ; the king 1s alsorecommended to foun d mon asteries for Brahman s , an

eviden t imitation of Buddhists .

Compare the following philosophy with“

that of Manu.

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THE KRISHNA AVATARA.

(From a native picture.)

CHAPTER III .

111011111

11 ihiutmism I .

Reaction from Brahmanism—Triumph of Buddhism—Downfall of Indian

Buddhism—The caste system—The Mahab harata—The Bhagavad-

gita

Krishna—Incarnations of the Deity—Immortality taught—The Rama

yana—Partial incarnations - Conquests of Rama—Resistance of Brah

manism—Kumarila Bhatta—Sankara—Worship of the supreme Brahman—The Smartas—Vishnu worship—The Puranas —The Vishnu Purana

Description of the Supreme Being—Great Vishnuite preachers—Ramanand—Kab ir—Chaitanya—Influence of Buddhism—The linga and the

salagram—Brahma—Wishnu the preserver—Incarnations of VishnuRama -Krishna—Buddha —Jagannath —Lakshmi—Siva the destroyer

Ascetic Sivaites—Durga—Kali —Ganesa—Gangsa—Local deities and de

mons—Worship of animals and trees—Deifi cation of heroes and saints.

IN our chapters on Buddhism

,it will b e shown that

the n ew religion which deposed Brahman ism from56

TRIM/MPH OF BUDDHJSM . 57

supremacy in In dia,an d greatly depressed it for more

than a thousan d years,was partly a n atural Reaction

reaction from the haughty sway of the Brah from.

man s an d their relian ce on ritual and sacrifice,

Brahmamsm’

an d partly the developmen t of a movemen t whi ch hadalready risen within the older system . The educatedB i ahman s came to see that the Vedic gods were poeticimagin ation s which could n o t all be true

,and that whereas

various gods— the Sun,the En compassirig Sky , the Dawn ,

etc .

— were represen ted as in depen den t an d supreme,they

must be eman ation s of on e supreme Cause . While theycon tinued to uphold the popular ideas about the gods

,an d

to con duct the customary sacrifices,they began to develop

a theological literature,of part of which we have already

given an accoun t,the Upan ishads an d the Puran as

,

teaching the un ity of God an d the immortality of thesoul

,still mingled with many myths an d superstition s .

Their n ew system involved the brotherhood of man ; b ut

it was reserved for Gautama to break through all the oldconven tion s

,and to foun d the great system of Triumph of

Buddhism . All classes foun d i n i t something Buddhism

that was lacking in Brahman ism,an d rejoiced in the

upsetting of many things that had been irksome . Fromthe thir d cen tury to the fourth cen tury A .D .

,Buddhism

in creasingly triumphed,un til it was professed by the

majority of the In dian people . But in the fifth cen turythe Buddhists w ere persecuted by the adheren ts of the

old religion . By the en d of that cen tury the Buddhis tleaders had taken refuge in Chi n a

,an d many of its priests

had carried the faith to n ew lan ds . As late as thetwelfth cen tury a few remain ed in In dia

,b ut n ow they

are n on -existen t,un less Jain ism be regarded as represen t

ing the old Buddhism . But the in fluen ce of Buddhismupon Brahman ism had been profoun d

,an d modern Hin du

i sm is a very differen t thing from the religion of the

Vedas an d Brahman as . In deed,Sir W .W . Hun ter terms

modern Hin duism the join t product of Buddhism an d

Brahman ism . The latter w as active an d slow ly changingduring all the time of the predomin an ce of the former

,

and we have the testimony of Greeks in Alex ander’s time

58 MODERN UJ SM .

an d later,and of Buddhist priests from Chin a who visited

In dia in the fifth an d seven th cen turies,that Brahman

priests were equally hon oured with Buddhist monks , andtemples of the Hindu gods adjoin ed the Buddhist religioushouses .The Hin dus date the fin al triumph over Buddhism

from the preaching of Kumarila,a Bengal Brahman

,who

Downfall ofp owerfully advan ced the Vedic teaching of aIndian person al Creator and supreme Being

,again st

Buddmsm' the imperson al n egation s of Buddhism ; b ut healso shone as a persecutor . Sir W . W . Hun ter

,however

,

traces the change which followed to deeper-seated causes- such that the rise of Hin duism was a n atural developmen t of racial characters and systems . According to him

,

it rests upon the caste system an d represen ts the coalitionof the old Vedic faith with Buddhism

,as well as with

the rude rites of pre-Aryan and Mongolian races . We

cann ot here give an accoun t of the caste system . Theimmen se subdivision of castes is the result partly of in termarriages

,partly of varied o ccupation s

,partly of locality

,

The caste partly of the in troduction of outside tribes toSystem' Hin duism . Religious exclusiven ess and trades

un ion ism,on ce grasped

,made easy progress

,an d converted

India in to a vast grouping of separate classes . Caste isa powerful in strumen t for person al disciplin e and themain ten an ce of conven tion and custom

,but it is a

weaken er of un ited popular action an d n ation al un ity .

Its great force is in its hereditary in stin cts and in socialand religious excommun ication . The offender again stcaste laws may b e fin ed by his fellow-members

,may b e

forbidden to eat or in termarry with them,an d may be

boycotted by the commun ity .

We cann ot un derstan d the growth of modern Hinduismwithout reference to the two great In dian epic poems

,

The the Mahabharata an d the Ramayan a . Theis a vast aggregation of poems an d

ep1so des , arranged in to a con tinuous whole , and is thelongest poem in the world

,bein g fourteen times as long

as the Iliad . It in cludes many portion s datin g back to

Vedic times,with others of later date up to a compara

THE BHA GA VAD -GJ TA . 59

tivelymodern time . It in cludes the whole cycle ofHin dumythology sin ce the Vedas

,an d practically represen ts a

deification of human heroes,side by side with V 1ew s of

Divin e in carn ation . Its cen tral story 1 elates a prehistoricstruggle between two families descen ded from the Moongod for a tract of coun try aroun d Delhi . It is believ edto have existed in a con siderably developed form five orsix cen turies before Christ, b ut it has been greatly modified by subsequen t Brahmani c addition s

,especially didactic

and religious 1n their n ature,teachin g the submission of

the military to the Brahman power .

The Bhagav ad-gita,or son g of Bhagavat

,is the mos t

importan t episode of this great epic,Bhagavat being a

term applied to Krishn a,on e of the in carn a The Bhe

tion s of Vishnu,the Pervader an d Preserver . gavad'

ag‘

im

Krishn a makes a revelation to the hero Ar jun a,just before

a great battle,in order to remove his scruples about

destroying human life . This revelation in effect teachesthe supremacy of the soul over the body

,an d in fact its

etern ity of existen ce in the supreme Being,so that death

cann ot harm it . Duty to caste an d its obligation s ishighly extolled ; b ut the poem is most remarkable to us

for its exposition in poetry of the Vedan tist philosophyof Pan theism

,which teaches that all the un iverse is in deed

Brahma,from whom all proceeds an d to whom all return s .

Krishn a,in giving an accoun t of himself to Arjun a

,says (we

quote from Sir Mon ier-Williams’s“In dian Wisdom

I am the an cien t sage, w ithout beginn ing,I am the ruler and the all- sustain er

,

I am in comprehen sible 1n form

More subtle and m inute than subtlest atoms ;I am the cause of the whole un iv erse ;Through me it is created an d dissolv ed ;I dw ell as w isdom

,in the heart of all.

I am the goodn ess of the good,I am

B egin n ing, mi ddle , end, etern al tim e,

The birth,the death of all . I hav e created all

Out of on e portion of myself. Think thou on me,

Hav e faith 1n m e , adore and worship m e,

An d Jo in thv self l n m editation to m e .

Thus shalt thou come to m e. O Arjun aThus shalt thou rise to my supreme abode

,

o M ODERN HJNDUJ S /P].

Where n either sun n or m oon hav e n eed to shine,

For kn ow that all the lustre they po ssess is m in e .

Among other revelation s of Krishn a,he states that he

is born on earth from time to time for the establishmen t of righteousn ess . In lauding work

,

Krishn a says :

Krishna.

Kn ow that w ork

Proceeds from the supreme . I am the pattern

For man to fo llow kn ow that I hav e don e

All arts already n ought remain s for me

T o gain b y action, yet I w ork for ev er

Unw eariedly,an d this whole un iverse

Would perish if I did n ot work mywork.

It will be eviden t from these quotation s that the Bha

gavad-gita con tain s much lofty thought ; indeed, it has

been praised as un equalled for sublim ity of con ception,

reason ing,and diction . Yet it is in n o slight degree

parallel with Buddhist ideas,in preachin g deliveran ce

through self-renun ciation and devotion

,en ding 1n ab sorp

ti on in the deity . Although women are n ot raised by i t,

yet the declaration of Krishna 1s,that all who resort to

him will reach the highest . He says : “ I have n eitherfrien d n or foe ; I am the same to all ; and all who worshipme dwell in me an d I in them . To them that love me

,

I give that devo tion bywhich they come at last to me.

No soul that _has faith,however imperfect the attainm en t

,

or however the soul have wan dered,shall perish

,e ither in

this world or in an other . He shall have n ew births tillpurified and made perfect, he reaches the supreme abode .

The repetition of i n carn ation s of deity 1s an importan tfeature ln this teaching ; an d from thi s root has developedTh eerh eh eh e the great

“ avatar or inc‘arn ation idea of theof the deity Hin dus

,the idea being that the deity is con

tinually bein g man ifested for the guidance and protectionof his people . Throughout the tran siti on period

,from

Brahman ism to Hin duism,varying forms of Krishn a

,as

the in carn ation of Vishnu 1 are con tinually described .

1 Vishnu is a god n am ed in the R ig-Veda as a form of the sun

striding across the heav en s in three paces .

VJSHN U. 6 1

He appears as the protecting hero and sain t and sage,

the overcomer of evil spirits,the popular won der

worker .From some of the characteristics ofKrishn a it has been

imagin ed that he has been derived from C hrist ; b ut there

VISHNU .

(From a native p i cture. )

is n o proof of this,and

,in deed

,the multiplication an d

varying form of the in carn ation s tells again st this idea .

In fact,

'

the belief proceeds from a date before the Christianera . The meaning of the word Krishn a

,

“black,

” alsomakes again st the Christian relation ship it rather poin ts

2 M ODERN HJND UZSM .

to respect for common human ity of black an d white alike ;for Krishn a is the teacher of Arjun a

,

“white .

”

This doctrin e about Krishn a brings in to view the essential link by which the in tellectual Brahman s conn ectedImmortality their higher philosophy with the common b etaught. liefs of the people . Krishn a man ifests the

n oblest traits of Hin du gen ius ; he also con descends tothe most ordin ary pursuits of men and children

,an d even

to Sportive recreation . The higher doctrin e,

of immor

tality is preached in such passages as the following in theBhagav ad

-gita,

“ There is an invisible,etern al existen ce

,

beyond this v isible , which does not perish when all thingselse perish

,even when the great days of Brahman ’s crea

tive life pass roun d in to n ight,and all that exists in form

return s un to God whence it came ; they who obtain thisn ever return . Bright as the sun beyon d darkn ess is He to the soul that remembers Him in meditation

,

at the hour of death,with thought fixed between the

brows,—Him the most an cien t of the wise

,the primal ]

ruler,the minutest atom ,

the sustain er of all,— in the hour

when each fin ds that same n ature on which he meditates,

an d to which he is conformed . They who puttheir trust in me

,and seek deliveran ce from decay and

death,kn ow Brahma

,

‘

and the highest spirit,an d every

action . They who kn ow me in my being,my person

,

and my man ifested life,in the hour of death

,kn ow me

in deed .

The other great epic poem,the Ramayan a

,or the

gomgs of Rama , is a chron icle which relates primarily toThe an other region of Aryan con quest

,Oudh

,and

Ramayana. then recoun ts the advan ce of the Aryan s in toSouthern In dia . It represen ts perhaps a later stage thanthe earlier parts of the Mahabharata, b ut 'was arrangedinto something like its presen t form a cen tury earlierperhaps about the b eginn ing of the third cen turyLike the sister epic , it presen ts the Brahman idea of the

Godhead in the form of an in carn ation,Rama

,of Vishnu

,

to destroy a demon . Briefly stated,the story is as follows .

It begin s by relating the son lessn ess of the king of Oudh,

a descen dan t of the sun -god . After a sacrifi ce to the

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64 M ODERN HJND OJS

according to Sir W . W . Hun ter,a reassertion

,in some

form,of the person ality of God and the equality of men

in His sight .Sankara Acharya was the disciple of Kumarila

,still

more famous than his master ; he popularised the lateVedan tist philosophy as a n ation al religion

,

and “ sin ce his short life in the eighth or n in thcen tury

,every n ew Hin du s ect has had to start with a

person al God (Hun ter) . He taught that the supremeGod Brahma was distin ct from the old Brahman triad

,

Sankara.

S IVA ,131 1 1111 11111 , AND VISHNU .

and must be worshipped by spiritual meditation s , n o t bysacrifices ; an d he perpetuated his teachin g by fou ndinga Brahman sect

,the Smartas . However

,he still allowed

the practice of the Vedic rites,and worship of the deity

in any popular form ; and it is claimed by popular tradition that he founded many of the Hin du sects of thepresen t day . Siva worship 1s supposed to be specially hiswork

,though it existed long before ; and he has ever

been represen ted by his follow ers as an in carnation of

Siva . Siva is,as we have said before

,the Rudra or

I/VOZCSHIP OF THE S UPREM E B RAH/WAZV.

Storm-god of the Rig-Veda,recognised as the Des troyer

and Reproducer . He was worshipped con temporan eouslywith the Buddhist ascenden cy and is highly Spoken of in

the Mahabharata ; b ut Sankara’s followers elevated his wor

ship till it became on e of the two chief forms of Hin duism .

(From a native p icture.)

The doctrin e of Sankara just referred to,that Brahma

,

or Brahman,is the supreme God

,distin ct from Worship of

the triad Brahma,Vishnu

,and Siva

,who are the supreme

man ifestation s of him . The su prem eBrahm anBrahman

is the absolute,hav ing no form n or Shape

,self- ex isF

66 MODERN H JND UISM .

ten t,illimitab le

,free from imperfection . There are but

a few worshippers of Brahman or Brahma alon e . As

creator he i s believed to have fin ished his work,and

there is n ow on ly on e temple to him,at Pushkara in

Ajmir . Ward , in 1818,wrote : “The Brahman s 1u their

morn ing an d even ing worship repeat an in can tation con

tain ing a description of the 1mage of Brahma,at n oon

they presen t to him a S ingle fiow er ; at the time of burn toffering

,ghee is presen ted to him . In the mon th of

Magh,at the full moon

,an earthen image of him is

worshipped , with that of Siva on his right han d and

Vishnu on his left .The Smartas of Southern India are a con siderable sect

who follow the philosophic teaching of Sankara . Thereare numerous religious houses conn ected withthis sect

,ackn owledging the headship of the

mon astery of Sringiri, in the western Mysore hills ; andthe chi ef pri est of the sect

,the h ead of this mon astery

,

is specially ackn owledged by all Sivaite worshippers,

who regard Sankara as on e of the in carn ation s of Siva .

The worship of Vishnu,

” says Sir W . W . Hun ter,in

on e phase or an other,is the religion of the bulk of the

Vishnu middle classes ; _with its roots deep down inWOI‘ ShiD beautiful forms of n on -Aryan n ature-worship

,

an d its top sen ding forth bran ches among the most refin edBrahman s an d literary sects . It is a rehgion in all thingsgraceful . Its gods are heroes or bright frien dly beings

,

who walk and converse with m en . Its legen ds breathean almost Hellenic beauty . This is the lofty positionassign ed to Vishnuism by on e of the most learn ed and

most impartial studen ts— a very differen t Opin ion fromthat which regards the car of Juggern aut as the repre

sen tativ e of all that is vile .

The doctrin es of modern Hin duism,111 their learn ed

aspect,are con tain ed in the Puran as (in San skrit), a

The series of eighteen treatises,in which vari ous

Puranas. Brahman s expoun d,in lengthy dialogues

,the

supremacy of Vishnu or Siva . The chief of them isthe Vishnu Puran a

,datin g from the eleven th cen tury

,

b ut con tain ing,as the word “puran a sign ifies

,an ci en t

The Smartas.

DE S CRIP TION OF THE S UPRE/ME B EING .

"

67

tradition s,some of which descen d from Vedic times ;

and others are, traceable to the two great The Vishhuepics .

“It in cludes a complete cosmogony or Parana.

accoun t of primary creation,accoun ts of the destruction

an d ren ovation of worlds,gen ealogies of gods and patri

archs,the reign s of the Manus , the in s titutes of soci ety,

in cluding caste and burial rites,and the history of the

prin ces of the solar and lun ar races,a life of Krishn a

,

and an accoun t of the end of the world . It is n ot n ecessary to dwell upon its con ten ts , which would require avolume . Pan theism is woven in to the gen eral scheme

,

God and Nature being iden tified,and Vishnu

,as supreme

God,being in carn ated m Krishn a .

The style of the Vishnu Puran a on its philosophicalSide may be gathered from the following extracts

,relating

to the supreme deity,as tran slated by H . H . Description of

Wilson :“Who can describe him who is n ot the supreme

to be apprehen ded by the sen ses,who is the 3 9mg”

best of all things,and the supreme soul

,self- existen t ;

who is devoid of all the distinguishing characteristics ofcomplexion

,caste

,or the like

,and 1s exempt from birth

,

vicissitude,death

,or decay ; who is always , an d alon e ;

who exists everywhere , an d in whom all things hereexist 1

and who i s then ce n amed Vasudeva (the resplen

dent on e in whom all things dwell) ? He is Brahma,

supreme lord,etern al

,unborn

,imperishable

,undecaying ;

of on e essen ce ; ever pure as free from defe .cts He,

that Brahma,was all things

,comprehen ding in his owri

n ature the indiscrete (spirit) an d the discrete (matter) .He then existed in the forms of Purusha an d Kala .

Purusha (spirit) is the first form of the supreme . Nextproceeded two other forms— the discrete and the indiscrete ; and Kala (time) was the last. These four thewise con sider to be the pure an d supreme condition of

Vishnu . These four forms,in their due proportion s

,

are the causes of the production of the phen omen a of

creation,preservation

,and destruction . Vishnu being

thus discrete and in discrete substan ce— spirit and timesports like a playful boy

,as you Shall learn by listen in g

to his frolics .

’

Here it should be noted that the creation

68 M ODE RN'

HINDUIS /W.

of the world is very common ly con sidered by the Hin duto be the sport or amusemen t of the supreme Being.

The life of Krishn a,as given by this Puran a

,is so

full of fabulous marvels as to read like an Arabian Night’sstory

,without its charm . It is sufficien t to say that this

RAVANA.

(From a native p icture. S ee accoun t of Ramayana, p .

Purana did n ot work the great developmen t of Vishnu

Greatworship

,which was due to a series of Vish

Vishnuite nuite ~ preachers,beginn ing with R aman uj a in

preachers ‘ the 12th cen tury,rising again st the cruel

doctrin es of the Sivaites . It was n ot till the end of the18th or beginn ing of the 14th cen tury that the great

RAMANAND. 69

development of popular religion in the n ame of Vishnutook place

,un der the apostolic leadership of

Raman an d . This teacher had his headquarterin a mon astery at Ben ares

,an d travelled from place to

Ramanand .

KAI/I DANCING ON S IVA.

(Fmm a native picture.)

place in Northern In dia . He chose twelve disciples fromthe despised castes of the barbers

,leatherdressers

,

weavers,an d the like

,who like the Buddhist monks

,

had to forsake the world,an d depen d solely on alms

,

while they wen t about teaching religion . They ad

70 MODERN HINDUJS M.

dressed the people in the vern acular Hin di,an d largely

helped to make it a literary language .\ The in clusion of

lower- caste m en among R am an an d’

s chief disciples is aproof that his reaction was directed again st Brahmanexclusiven ess ; and it embraced many features of Bud

dhism, in cluding the mon asteries or retreats for the

mendican ts .Kabir

,the greatest of R am an an d

’s disciples

,is n otable

for hi s effort to combin e the Mohammedan s with theHin dus in on

'

e'

religioussystem and Brahman arrogfi hbw as

“

well asimage-worship

,foun d in him a strong Oppon en t . He

taught that the god of the Hin du is the same as the godof the Mahometan .

“ To Ali (Allah) and to Ran ia

(writes on e of his di sciples)“we owe our life

,and should

show like ten dern ess to all who live . What avails it towash your mouth

,to coun t your beads

,to bathe in holy

streams,to b ow in temples

,if,while you mutter your

prayers or journ ey on pilgrimage,deceitfuln ess is in your

heart ? The Hin du fasts every eleven th day ; the Mussulman on the Ramazan . Who

, _formed the q

rem ain ingmon ths and days

,that you should ven erate t o n e ?

Behold b ut on e in all things . He lio w om theworld belongs

,He is f the father of the worshippers alike

of Ali and_

of R ama .

” Kabir recogn ised in all the variedlots and chan ges of man

,his hopes and fears and religious

diversities,the on e Divin e Spirit ; when this was re ;

andm

th—e soul foun d

burn t- offerings orsacrifices

,but by faith (

and meditation on the SUMBeing , and by keeping hiS holy

l

n ames for ev'

e

'

r

W

On the

p s%d in the heart . Kabir had a vast number of

followers,especially in Bengal ; the headquarters of his

sect is the Kabir Chaura at Ben ares .

The worship of. Juggern aut,more properly Jagann ath

(literally , the Lord of the world) dates on ly from the

beginn in g of the l 6th cen tury,being mainly

propagated by Chaitanya,who was so great

a preacher of the Vishnuite doctrin es that sin c e his deathhe has been widely worshipped as an in carn ation of

Kab ir.

Chaitanya.

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7 2 MODERN HJND UJ SM .

or less open ly,in Hin duism . Not the least s trange con

jun ction of Hinduism with other religion s is that in whi chSiva-worshippers visit Adam ’s Peak in Ceylon to Worshipthe footprin ts of their deity . Buddhists revere the sameimpression as the impression of Buddha ’s foot

,whil e

Mohammedan s revere it as a relic of Adam,the father

of mankin d . This is but a specimen of the commonresorts of Hin du pilgrims

,where Mussulman an d Hindu

alike revere some sacred object.Hin dus also absorbed or adopted many rites and super

stition s of n on -Aryan peoples,such as the serpen t an d

The lingadragon -worship of the Nagas , reveren ce for

and the crocodiles an d gen erative emblems,fetish an d

salagram’ tree worship,etc . The worship of gen erative

emblems (linger) foun d a wide field among the Sivaites,

whose god was the reproducer as well as destroyer ; whilethe fetish

,or _ v ill age , or local god , in the shape of an

unhewn stone (kn own as salagmm) or a tree , usually thetulasi plan t

,became the usual symbols of the Vishnu ite

In n ot a few cases their rites are little elevated abovethose of primitive savagery as con ducted by low- casteHin dus .Coming n ow to a description of the chief Hin du gods

as popularly worshipped,we fin d Brahma

,the creator

,

represen ted as a red man with four heads,

dressed in white,and riding upon a goose .

Brahma ’s wife,Sarasvati

,the goddess of wisdom an d

scien ce,is depicted as a fair young woman with four

arms ; with on e right han d she presen ts a flower toBrahma ; in the other she holds a book of palm- leaves ;in on e of her left han ds she carries a strin g of pearls . In

the Mahabharata she is called the mother of the Vedas .She is worshipped on ce a year in the same mon th asBrahma by all who have any learn ing ; an d

’

with thisw orship are conn ected pen s

,ink

,paper

, b ooks , etc .

Women take n o part in this festival .Vishnu is adored by the Vishnuite sects as the equal

or even the Superior of Brahma,and is especially termed

the Preserver,exempt from impatien ce an d

passion . Various legen ds in the Puran as de

Brahma.

Vishnu.

[NCARNA 71

1 0 1115 OF VJ SHN U. 73

scribe the other gods as submittin g to Vishnu,who is

termed omn iscien t an d almighty . In pictorial representation s Vishnu usually appears as a black m an with fourarms . in on e han d a club i s held

,in a secon d a shell

,in

the third a discus,in the fourth a lotus

,an d he rides

upon the Garuda bird .

Sir Homer-W illiams describes both Vishnuism an d

Sivaism as forms of mon otheism,because they set aside

the coequal trin ity Brahma,Vishnu an d Siva in favour

of their special god : b ut it may be doubted whethermany of the Vishnuites can be call ed in telligen t mon otheists

,rather than superstitious worshippers of they

kn ow n ot what . The Opinion of this great In dian scholar,

that Vishnuism “ is the only real religion of the Hin dupeoples

,an d has more common groun d with Christian ity

than any other n on -Christian faith,

” mus t be taken ashaving b ut a limited application when he has to qualifyi t by referring to “ the gross pol"theistic supersti tion sand hi deous idolatry to which it gives rise .

’

\Ve mustackn owledge the distinguishing merit of Vishnuism tobe

,that it teaches in ten se devotion to a person al god

,

who exhibits his sympathy with human suffering an d hisin terest in human affairs by frequen t descen ts (avatars)upon earth. Of these we must give a brief accoun t .As many as twen ty—eight av ata1 s of Vishn u have been

enumerated in the Puran as . They represen t the descen tin to human bodies

,by birth from earthly In cam ations

paren ts,of a portion or the whole of the divin e Of Vishnu

essen ce of the god ; they do n ot in terfere with the divin ebody of the god

,whi ch remain s un changed . Of these

we may enumerate (1 ) the Fish , whose form Vishnu tookto save Mann

,the progen itor of mankin d

,from the um

versal deluge . Mann obtain ed the favour of Vishnu by"

his piety,was warn ed of the comin g deluge

,an d com

man ded to build a ship,wherein he was to take the seven

Rishis or patriarchs and the seeds of all living things .

When the flood came,Vishnu

,as the Fish

,dragged the

ship,by a cable fixed to a horn on his head

,to a high

crag where it was secured till the flood wen t down . Theavatars of the tortoise , the boar , the man - lion

,the dwarf

,

74 MODERN B LVDUJSM .

an d Rama with the axe,we must pass over . The great

Rama,Ramachan dra

,or the moon - like Rama

,

has been already referred to as the subject of

the Ramayan a .

“Every m an,woman

,and child in

In dia,

”says Sir Mon ier-Williams

,prob ably with some

exaggerati on,

“ is familiar with Rama ’s exploits for therecovery of his wife

,in somuch that a common phrase for

an ign oran t person is ‘on e who does n ot kn ow that Sita

was Rama i s wife .

"From Kashmir to Cape Comorin then ame of Rama is on every on e ’s lips . All sects revere it

,

an d show their reveren ce by employing it on all occasion s .

For example,when frien ds meet

,it

'

is common for themto s alute each other by uttering Rama ’s n ame twice . N0n ame is more common ly given to children

,and n o name

more common ly invoked at fun erals and in the hour of

death . It is a link of un ion for all classes,castes

,and

creeds .But Krishn a i s the most popular of all the 1n carnation s

of Vishnu,an d is represen ted as man ifestin g his en tire

Krishna, the essen ce . He is especially the god of the lowerpreserv er orders

,having been brought up amon g cow

herds and other peasan ts,W i th whom he con stan tly

sported . A multitude of marvellous stories are told abouthim ; but it is eviden t from the history of Krishn a literature an d practices that he

,like Rama

,is a deified hero .

Sir Mon ier-VVilliam s iden tifies him as a powerful chief ofthe Yadava tribe of Rajputs in cen tral India east of theJumn a

,while the origin al of Rama was a son of a king

of Oudh , So possible i s i t to trace gods adored by multitudes of human beings to the exaggeration an d deifica

tion of her0 1c m en .

Thus we shall be little surprised to find Buddhaadopted as on e of the in carn ation s of Vishnu . The Brah

man s accoun t for this by saying that Vishnu,

ln compassion for an imals,descen ded as Buddha

in order to discredit the Vedic sacrifices . The Brahman ical writers

,says W ilkin s

,

“were far too shrewd toadmit that on e who coul d influen ce men as Buddha didcould be other than an in carn ation of deity ; and as hisinfluen ce was in favour of teaching opposed to their own

,

Rama.

Buddha.

TEM PLE,BENA RE S . 75

they cleverly say that it was to mislead the en emies ofthe gods that Buddha promulgated hi s doctrin e that

—srv.1 TEMPLE ,

BENARES .

76 MODERN HJND UJ SM .

Not con ten t with in carn ation s that have taken placethe Vishnuites look for a future descen t which they calthe Kalki avatar . He is to appear at the end of the Kalage (which began with his descen t as Krishn a), when thworld has become utterly wicked

,an d will be seen in th

sky,seated on a white horse

,wielding a drawn sword

,fo

the destruction of the wicked and the restoration of the

world to purity .

We have n ot in cluded Jagann ath among the in carn ation s of Vishnu

,both because it is believed that he is a

appearan ce of Vishnu himself and also b ecausit is probable that he was origin ally the go

of a n on -Aryan tribe adopted in to Hin duism . It issight of this god that is s o vehemen tly desired

,whethe

as he is bathed or dressed,or being drawn on his car

Chaitanya,the reformer

,i s an other in carn ation of Vishnu

according to the popular n otion,although he lived i1

almost modern times . Lakshmi the wife 0

Vishnu,is very con sidera b ly worshipped as th

goddess of Love , Beauty , and Prosperity .

‘

She is repre

sen ted as of a bright golden colour, seated on a lotus,an

having on ly the ordin ary number of arms .Siva

,the destroyer

,is n aturally represen ted as of

stern and vindictive disposition ; but yet this is comgive , the

patib le with his being regarded as a b en eficendestroyer deity . Death being the tran sition to a n ev

form of life,the Destroyer is truly the R e - creator

,an

this accoun ts for the mean ing of his n ame— the Bright 0Happy on e . Siva 1s exclusively a post-Vedic god , thoughe has been iden tified by the Hin dus with the Rudra othe Vedas

,and numerous features of Siva ’s character an

history are developed from those of Rudra . In th

Ramayan a,Rudra (Siva) is represen ted as marrym

Uma the daughter of Daksha ; it is this same Umwho is much more w idely s kn own un der the n ames 0

Parvati,Durga

,and Kali . It is stated that a grea

quarrel arose be tween Siva an d Daksha,h1s father- in

law. In this quarrel Uma gave herself volun tarily t

the flames,and -became a sati (suttee) , and was rehor

as Parvati . Siva then became an ascetic,living wit

Jagannath.

Lakshmi.

S/VA ,THE DES TROYER . 7 7

GANE SA. LAKSHMI. DURGA. SARASVATI . KARTIKEYA.

(From a native picture.)

Parvati 111 the Himalayas,destroying demon s . He is

represen ted sometimes with Parvati,wearin g roun d his

black n eck a serpen t an d'

a n ecklace of skulls,an d with

an exten sive series of emblems,such as a white bull 0 11

which he rides,a tiger ’s skin

,etc . ; he has three eyes ,

on e bein g in his forehead . As Mahadeva (the great god),which is his most usual n ame

,he may b e shown as an

ascetic with matted hair,living in meditation and self

7S JUODEZBN HIND UZSM .

disciplin e in a forest . It i s said that Siva,in a quarrel

with Brahma,cut off his fifth head

,which

,however

,

stuck to the destroyer ’s han d . To escape from a pursuin ggian t created by Brahma

,Siva fled to Ben ares

,where he

became absolved from his sin an d freed from the headof Brahma

,thus causing Ben ares to become a specially

sacred city.

In con sequen ce of Siva’s patron age of the bull as hissteed

,a strange custom has arisen 1n conn ection with the

fun erals of Sivaites . When ever it is possible,a bull is

set free to wan der,and has a sacred character

,so that

BRAHMA AND SARASVATI.

n o on e dares to injure it ; sometimes as many as sevenbullocks are thus set f11 .ee This is believed to secure thefav our of Siva . Similarly

,sin ce he was an ascetic

,m any

of his followers pay court to him by a life of austerityan d painful suffering . This w as much m ore frequen t in

former times than n ow,for the British Governmen t has

discouraged or prohibited many of the most painful exAscetic hib ition s . Formerly many Siva worshippersSivaites would be swung from iron hooks fix ed in their

backs,or would jump from a height upon

_the edges of

sharp kn ives . But it is not easy to put down such

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o M ODE RN HIND I/ISM .

of Kali . The accoun t of the image of Kali given laterin describing on e of the Bengal festivals will explain

some of her qualities . Formerly human beings,

as well as con siderable an imal sacrifices,were

offered to Kali,a human sacrifice being said to ple

Kali for a thou san d years . Cutting their flesh an d burning portion s of their bodies were amon g the action s bywhich worshippers sought to please the goddess . Thegreat number of Hin dus who hear the n ame of Kali orDurga or Tara in dicates her popularity down to thepresen t day.

Gan esa,the elder son of Siva an d Parvati

,the god of

pruden ce and policy,having an elephan t ’s head

,in di

cating his sagacious n ature,is the god of

Bengal shopkeepers he has a trunk,on e tusk

,

an d - four han ds . Kartikeya is the younger son of Sivaan d Parvati

,_an d is called the god of war ; in southern

In dia hi s name is Sub ramanya. Lastly,we must n otice

Gan ga,the Gan ges

,whose birth and doings

are the subject of elaborate legen ds,and whose

waters are believed to have power to clean se from all sin s,

past,presen t

,an d future“ A specially sacred spot is that

where the Ganges meets the ocean,at Sagar Islan d

,to

which vast numbers of people flock each January,to

bathe with joy in the flood,and to worship the long lin e

of deities - whose images are set up by priests who taketoll of the pilgrims .But when we have exhausted the list of great gods

,

we have on ly touched as it were the more promin en t of

Hin du deities,which are popularly said to number three

hun dred and thirty million s . In fact,throughout In dia

the old local deities and demon s,so much n oticed in

Local deities Chin a , hold exten sive sway . Every village hasand demons. its own special guardian mother

,who has a

husban d associated with her as protector . But the motheris most worshipped

,an d is believed to be mest accessible

to prayer an d offerings,an d very liable to pun ish, an d

to inflict diseases if n eglected . Many have a specialty ,such as the preven tion of a particu lar disease , or thegiving of children . Many are deifications of n otable

Ganesa.

Ganga.

LOCAL DE ITZE S A JVD DEZWOZVS . 81

women ; some are in effect devils , delighting in blood .

All are believed to con trol secret Operation s of n ature,

and to have magic powers which may be imparted toworshippers .Some even go so far as to say that the predomin an t

belief of the Hin dus,especially in the villages

,is a dread

of evil spirits,who are believed to bring about all evils

an d diseases,an d often have peculiar and special areas

of destructiven ess . They may have material bodies of amore ethereal structure than those of m en

,have differ

en ces of sex,an d possess the power of assuming any

shape and moving through the air in any direction .

Some of these are the Asuras,or demon s created at the

foun dation of the world or by the gods (though origin allythe word mean t simply beings of a godlike n ature) . We

cann ot go into their classes ; b ut it is to be n oted thatthe majority of demon s are believed to have been originally human beings

,whose evil nature lives after them as

demon s .‘

All crimes,diseases

,and calamities are due to

special devils . They mostly require food,and especially

the blood of living animals . Sometimes moun ds of earth,

piles of bricks,etc .

,do duty as shrin es for their “wor

ship,

” the offering of food an d recital of in can tation sbeing the chief rites . Every village has its own demon .

A volume might be occupied in describing the devil- cultsof In dia . In the south

,where they are believed to de

light in dan cing,music

,etc .

,

“when pestilen ce is rife inany district, profession al exorcisers , or certain person sselected for the purpose

,pain t their faces

, put on hideousmasks

,dress up in fan tastic garmen ts arm themselves

with strange weapon s,and commen ce dan cingu Their

object is to person ate particular devils,or rather perhaps

to in duce such devils to leave the person s of their victimsand to occupy the person s of the dan cers

,who shriek

,

fling themselves about,and work themselves up in to a

frenz y of excitemen t,amid beating of tom -toms

,blowing

of horn s , and ringing of bells . When the dan cers arethoroughly exhausted, they sink down in a kin d of tran ce

,

and are then believed to be gifted with clairvoyan ceand a power of delivering prOphetic utteran ces . The

G.

82 [MODERN H JND UJS /lf .

spectators ask them question s about missing relatives orfuture even ts

,an d their deliveran ces are supposed to be

oracular (Mon ier-Williams) . Many strange festivalsare held in conn ection with this devil-worship in In dia

,

and the facts show how gen eral must formerly have

Worship of been the practices n ow foun d among the moreanimals and savage races . The extensive an imal worshiptrees

of cows,serpen ts

,monkeys

,etc

,and the wor

ship of trees still prevailing i s an other coii siderab le sur

v iv al of more primitive times . It depen ds largely in

In dia on the V 1ew taken of the sacredn ess of life,an d

the tran smigration of the souls of m en in to an imals .

Deifi cation ofAgain

,the worship of great m en seems even

heroes and more deeply implan ted ln the Hin du than insaints the Chin ese min d

,an d again and again great

leaders,preachers

,teachers or sain ts are deified

,an d

regarded as in carn ation s of Vishnu or Siva ; and evenmen of moderate fame are after death hon oured and

worshipped,an d a shrin e is set up to them in the place

where they were best kn own . Surely we have saiden ough to show that in every way the Hin dus are veryremarkable for their worship of the superior powers in allcon c eivable form s .

[See“Oriental Religion s : India,

” by S . J ohn son ,English and Foreign

Philo sophical Lib rary. Sir W. W . Hun ter’s India ,

”vol. v i . o f the Im

perial Gaz etteer of India,

”and also separately pub lished . R ev. W . Ward

’s

View of the History, R eligion an d Literature of the Hindus , R ev .

W . J . Wilkin s ’

s Hindu Mythology and Modern Hinduism .

”i

sir Mon ie’

r

William s’

s R eligious Thought and Life in India,”and “ Indian Wisdom

Sacred B ooks of the

A GHAUT AT BENARES , WITH BECES SES FOR DEVOTEES.

CHAPTER IV.

11110131111

11 Iaiutufs‘

m II .

Inclusiveness of Hindu worship—Variations in modern times—Religiousnessof the Hindus Household worship—The guru—Initiation—Elements of

worship—Brahman ritual Ritual of the common people—Temple ser

vices—Temple priests—Frequent festivals—Images—Festival ceremonies

—Miracle .plays—Festiva1s of Durga—Pilgrimages to holy places

Benares—Temple of Bisheshwar—Pilgrims’ob servances—Puri—The great

temple - The images—Consecrated food—The Car festival—R eported immolation of v ictims—A touching incident—Vishnu temple at Trichino

poly—Vishnuite sects—Sivaite sects—The Saktas—The Sikhs—The S ikhb ib le—The Brahmo Somaj Rammohun R oy

—B evendra Nath Tagore

Keshub Chundra Sen—The Universal Somaj—Fatalism—Maya, or illusion—Transmi gration —R ewards and punishments—Death and cremationCeremonies for the dead—Moral state Condition of Wives—Position of

women—Widows—Suttee—Disconnection of morals and religi on—Hinduvirtues.

N describing modern Hin du religious practices an d

worship,we are met W i th a most vari ed assemblage

84 MODERN HINDUZSM .

of rites and customs,often mutually discordan t

,all of

Inclusivenesswhi ch have an equal claim to i n clusion un der

of Hindu the n ame Hi n dui sm . Never has there been a

W°rsmp1 religion so expan sive an d all- in clusive . As a

recen t Bengal cen sus report states,the term den otes

n either a creed n or a race,n either a church n or a people

,

but is a general expression devoid of precision . It embraces alike the disciples of Vedan tic philosophy

,the

high- class Brahman,the low -caste worshippers of all the

gods of the Hin du pan theon,and the semi-barbarous

ab origin es who are en tirely ign oran t of Hin du mythology,

and worship a ston e in time of sickn ess and danger .There is so great a differen ce in the prevalen t forms ofworship in differen t districts

,there are so many person al

and household ceremon ies,differin g according to rank 0 1

1

Variations in locality, an d. also there have been so manymOdGm timeS changes in modern times

,that it is quite

impossible to give more than a partial view in a limitedspace . The common

'

people believe their worship haslasted un changed for long ages

,and European s have

largely adopted the sam e view ; but while the Hindun ature remain s very largely the same

,variation s in

worship have been mul titudinous . The great car festivalof Jagann ath is a modification of a Buddhist festival ;and it would b e easy to multiply proofs of the changesin modern Hinduism .

To a greater exten t than any n ation un der the sun,the

Hin dus are a religious people . As Mr . Wilkin s says,To

Religiousnesstreat

.

of the ordin ary life of“

the Hin du is to°

.

f‘ the describe the Hin du religion . From beforeHmdus ° birth to the close of l ife periodical ceremon ies

are enjoin ed and,for the most part

,practised .

” Mostlythey are survivals from an imism

,sorcery

,astrology

,an d

the like primitive beliefs . Thus,before the birth of a

child the mother must n ot wear c lothes over which birdshave flown

,must always have a kn ot in her dress roun d

the waist,must not walk or sit in the courtyard

,in order

to avoid evil Spirits must wear an amulet roun d her n eckcon tain ing flowers con secrated to the god Baba Thakur ,and must drink every day a few drops of w ater touched

[NJ TJA TJ ON. 5

by this amulet. The n aming of a boy is a most importan tceremony

,inc luding a thanksgiving service

,with gifts

for the ben efit of an cestors . The n ames of gods or deifiedheroes are often chosen

,with the addition of an other

chosen by the astrologer,who calculates the horoscope of

the child .

Every household at all raised above poverty has afamily priest (un less the head is himself a Brahman ),who performs service

,usually twice a day

,in Household

a room in which the family idol i s kept. There WOI‘ ShiPo

is also a platform Opposi te the entran ce gate of the house,

to receive the images made for the periodic festivals .The priest bathes and an oin ts the idol

,reci tes a ritual

,

and presen ts offerings of fruits and flowers given by thefamily . The family

,however

,are n ot usually presen t

,

the priest being the on ly person whose presen ce is n eeded .

The offerings are his perquisite,and he is supported

en tirely by on e or two families . Of course he is presen tat all the importan t family ceremon ies .The guru

,or religious teacher

,is a distin ct fun ction ary ;

he is the in itiator in to the Hin du sects,an d the teacher

of their doctrin es ; but he does n ot live in thehouse of a disciple . The Hindus are taughtthat it is better to offend the gods than their guru

,for

the latter can in tercede if the former are angry ; b ut ifthe guru is offended

,no on e can in tercede

,an d the curse

of the guru brings untold miseries . He usually visits hisdisciples only on ce a year

,un less he wan ts more mon ey .

His treatmen t of them is very lofty ; and educated Hindusthemselves describe the gurus as covetous

,unprin cipled

,

and familiar with vice . The best en tertainmen t

,n ew carpets and large presen ts are de

manded by them,and few teach anything of value .

Every Hin du boy of eight years old (sometimes older)receives from his chosen guru

,who n eed n ot be a Brah

man,a sacred text or man tra

,called the seed text

,which

is taught to him in private,with the n am e of the god

selected by the guru for hi s especial worship . This textmust n ever be repeated to others

,and must be s aid over

men tally or in whispers one hundred and eight times a

The guru.

Initiation.

86 211 ODERN HJND

day (the number is often coun ted by a rosary) . Theyouth, before receiving it , fasts , bathes , and appears in

TEMPLE or KRISHNA, NEFAUL.

spotless robes ; an d if he be of the twice-born (Brahman ;Kshatriya

,or Vaisya) castes , he for the first time puts the

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88 .MODER 1’V HJND UIS /W.

c essiv e births an d deaths,and who eagerly desire beati

tude . But this prayer must b e preceded by therepetition of the n ames of the seven worlds : 1 . Thisearth . 2 . The world of the un con scious dead awaitingthe en d of the presen t age . 3 . The heaven of the good .

4 . The middle world . 5. The world of births,for an imals

destroyed at the end of each age . 6 . The abode of theson s of Brahma . 7 . The abode of Brahma the supreme .

The word Om is to be repeated before and after this list .

Many other ceremon ies follow . The heart is supposedto be clean sed from sin by draw ing up a little water byon e n ostril an d expelling it by the o ther . On e of theprayers is

,

“May whatever sin I have committed byn ight

,in thought

,word

,or deed be can celled by day .

Whatever sin is in me,may it be far removed .

”

Before the reading of the Vedas,which follows

,offerings

of grain,etc .

, ,must b e made to the gods , with invitation sto them to be presen t and cheerful during the readingof the Veda ; then similar offerings must be made toYama and the great progen itors of mankind

,then for the

Brahman ’s an ce stors,an d for all m en with the object

of relieving the wan ts of sufferers in hells , or in creasingthe blessedn ess of those in heaven . After this exhaustingseries of ceremon ies

,the Brahman

,before taking his meal

,

offers a portion to deities,an cestors

,and to all o ther

beings,and must then feed his guests before partaking

himself. Fin ally he must wash hi s han ds an d feet,after

wards tasting the water . As his food i s given him,he

says,

“May heaven give thee l ” an d when he takes ithe says ,

“May earth receive thee"” H e may n ot yeteat un til he has passed his han d roun d the plate to

separate it from the rest of the company,has offered fiv e

pieces to Yama , has made five oblation s to breath, and

has wetted hiseye s . In addition to these rites (whichare here on ly partially given ) there may b e others sign i

fican t of the particular sect to which the man belongs .

Some will also wait for possible guests before taking food ,for Brahma himself is represen ted as presen t in everyguest .But it must b e own ed that the mass of the Hin dus

[D OLS [N TEM PLE OF /A GANNA TH , FUR].

11

have no such elaborate daily ritual . The Sakta sect it

is true, and the more religious members of other sects,

90 M ODERN [J’JND UJSM .

have a con siderable daily ceremony,all in cluding much

Ritual of the the same ideas of purification of body,avert

common i ng the anger of ghosts or an cestors,the

13901019 1 Offering of sacrifices to the great gods and

goddesses,the recitation of their deeds a s told in the

Puran as,etc . But the majority of Hindus on ly bathe

daily,an d raise their han ds and bow to the rising sun .

Shopkeepers have an image or a pi cture of Gan esa intheir shops

,an d burn a little in cen se before it in the

morn ing ; Vishnuites have on e or more of the god ’semblem s

,e specially the Salgrama (a fossil Ammon ite),

which they guard as if it were a living being,bathing it

in the hot season,etc .

,an d before these daily prayers are

offered . The n ames of the gods are repeated a greatnumber of times a day . However

,on days when it is

n ot veryc onven ien t to go through a long form ,the Hin du

will be con ten t with repeating the text he was taughtby his guru

,which is often an unmean in g j ingle .

The public temples con tain the prin cipal religious apparatu s of the mass of the Hin dus . But it must n o t be

Temple imagin ed from this that their temples are asserv ices a ru le large . They are n ot

,in gen eral

,places

for the assemblage of numbers of people,an d in fact they

are mostly n ot more than ten or a dozen feet square .

They are simply small buildings in charge of a priest,

who takes care of an idol or image,which is supposed to

be a special abode of the deity,an d who receives offerings

from worshippers coming on e by on e,and prostrating

themselves before the image . Many of them have beenbuilt by public con tribution s

,others by rulers

,an d m any

by well-to -do private person s anxious to secure m erits tobalan ce their sin s . If they desi re to make a large offering

,

they do n ot build a larger temple,b ut a number of smaller

on e s,seven

,fourteen

,twen ty- on e

,or even more

,some of

which may n ever b e u sed . Old temples of this kin d aren ot repaired ; the n ew m an does n ot wish to do what willbut add to the

“

merit of an other . Usually the temple hasan outer court

,often with veran dahs roun d , in which

pilgrims may lodge when they come from a distan ce .

The temple‘

itself has two main portion s— the vestib ule,

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92 M ODERN HIND I/15 111 .

together,and covered with hay and mud from a sacredstream . They are then dried in the sun

,and

afterwards pain ted,dressed

,and otherwise de

corated accordin g to some mode presen ted by the sacredlaw-books .

"When they are taken to the place of worship

,

the priest engaged for the occasion performs a ceremonycalled the giving of life

,in which the god is invited to

Festival reside i n the image for on e,two

,or three day .s

ceremonies It then becomes sacred,arid in ii st be touched

by n on e - b ut a Brahman,—must be approached by n one

but a Hin du . A full morn in g and even ing worship iscelebrated b efore

l

the image,that in the even ing being

followed by amusemen ts . The con cluding day W i tn essesthe farewell of the deity

,who is thanked for favouring

the worshippers with his or her presen ce,an d i s suppli

eated to return n ext year . When the god is supposedto have departed

,the sacred image b ecomes on ce more

common clay,and may be touched by any on e . About

sun set it is taken to a river bank,or to a tan k

,with a

musical procession,dan cing women an d lighted torches .

The image is rowed out to the middle of the stream and

dropped in to the water,there to dissolve and decay . The

amoun t of worship performed by Hin dus is in creased bythe n ecessity of avert ing the evil which o ther gods besidestheir own Special deity may cause , and by their desireto gain any , possible addition al ben efit . We cann ot giveSpace to a recital of the importan t public festivals whichoccur throughout the mon ths of the year . These vary indifferen t localities

,an d the total number is en ormous .

For in stan ce,there are festivals all over Bengal to J agan

n ath,in imitation of the great on es at Puri

,Cars an d great

images being similarly provided . There are numerousspecial festivals to Sasthi

,who watches over women in

child-bearin g,and protects children . At the festivals

of Krishn a miracle plays form an importan tfeature

,an d represen t the most importan t

even ts in the lives of the gods,the actors being got up

to represen t them,an d n ot omitting their many

.

in

decen t words and action s . By such represen tati on s,

among other things the illiterate Hin du masses come to

Images.

M iracle- ypla s.

CAR OF j AGANNA TH A T FUR], ORIS SA .

CAR or JAGANNATH AT rum, ORISSA.

93

94 M ODERN HZND UJ SM .

have a more vivid idea of the history of their gods thanany people .

The festival of Durga in Bengal is especi ally elaborate,

the son s of Durga,Sarasvati

,the wife of Brahma

,an d

Festivals of Lakshmi, the W i fe of Vishnu , being atten dan tDurga figures . Durga herself has ten han ds

,holding

weapon s em b lematic of her victories . The forms of

worship previous to the coming to life of the goddess arevery long

,and one or more an imals may be sacrificed

,

sometimes a buffalo . So gen erally is this festival ob

served,—husban ds an d son s return ing home for it

,an d

busin ess bein g suspen ded,—that it has been termed the

Christmas of Bengal . It is celebrated in the sixth mon th(parts of September and

_October) . The festival of Lakshmi

,which follows

,is the occasion for sitting up at n ight

playing cards or amusing themselves,for the goddess is

believed during the n ight to pass over all who are awake .

In the seven th mon th there is a very repulsive celebrationof Durga in her bloodthirsty aspect . “In the imageswhich represen t her at this festival

,says Mr . Wilkins

,

she is black,as her n ame Kali implies

,an d her husban d

is lying down un der her feet . Her tongue protrudes fromher mouth

,her four arms are extended

,on e han d grasp

ing a sword , an other the head of a gian t,an d the other

two sign alling to her hosts . As ear-rings she has twodead bodies of her foes ; her n eck is adorn ed with a n eckl ace of skulls

,and her on ly garmen t

,a zon e

,is made of

the han ds of her van quished foes,whilst her hair falls

down in long tresses to her waist . In toxicated with the

blood of her foes,her eyes flash with rage

,her eyebrow

are dyed w ith crimson,and blood flows down her breast.”

This worship is atten ded with midn ight sacrifices of

an imals,shrieking invocation s

,and drunken orgies . Many

of the festivals assume the aspect of carn ivals . At someof the festivals of Siva hooks u sed to b e in serted in the

backs of men,whi ch were then swung in the air at a great

height ; but this is n ow discon tinued , either a dummy beingused

,or the hook fixed to a rope roun d the man ’s body .

The n ext great departmen t of Hin du worship is thatcon cern ed with pilgrimages to particular places of great

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96 M ODERN HJND UZSM .

We can on ly n otice in any detail the two greatestplaces of pilgrimage in India

,Ben ares and Puri : the

Benaresformer being the special ab ode of Siva

,the

latter of Vishnu . In no In dian city has grossidolatry a stronger hold than in Ben ares ; ugly idols,mon strosities

,and reproductive emblems are met with on

all sides . More temples have been built and more mon eyhas been spen t on worship un der British rule than duringan equal period of Mussulman domin ation ; but this isaccoun ted for by the greater wealth and freedom of the

people .fl

Some years ago more than a thousan d templeswere coun ted in Ben ares proper

,exclusive of suburbs

,and

of image s in house walls . These are d evoted to a greatvariety of deities

,sometimes Siva under differen t names

,

or relatives of other deities conn ected with Siva,and n ot

con ten t with an image of the god worshipped in a particular temple

,in many cases the pri ests have added

images of others in n iches or in rows ; sometimes even a

hun dred are to be seen in rows . The exceeding san ctityof Ben ares is accoun ted for by a legen d which we have .

already given (p . and this holy character extends toten m iles from the Ganges

,the tract being boun ded by

a win ding road fifty miles long,con tain ing hun dreds of

temples . To walk along this road is itself a most meritori ous act ; residen ts are taught that they should walkalong it at least on ce a year ; and whosoever dies withinthis area

,even a heretic or a crimin al

, gain s heav .enThe most importan t temple in the city is that of

B isheshwar (god of the world), a n ame given to Siva asTemple of king of all the gods in the Ben ares territory

,

BiSheShwar the gods of the sacred road being his policeforce . He is supposed to reside in a ston e linga emblem

,

and before this crowds of people pass daily with offeringsof rice

,flowers

,grain

,ghee

,and mon ey . Many of the

worshippers i n approaching the god show sign s of greatfear

,dreading to c all down his an ger. An other of the

great places of attraction is the Mankarn ika well,a foul

tank of water which is believed to wash out the greatestcrimes .Pilgrims taking the fifty miles journ ey roun d Benares

THE GREA T TEM PLE . 97

have to go through a severe ritual they must, if possible ,bathe before starting

,an d at the end of each Pilgrims

’

day,an d must walk barefoot

,must provide for Ob serVanceS o

their own wan ts without receiving from or giving toothers

,must n ot quarrel or use bad language on the road

,

and must give gifts to the priests of the Mankarn ika wellat the end of the journ ey .

In a somewhat differen t way from Ben ares , Puri (thecity) on the coast of Orissa is as famous an d holy in theeyes of Hin dus . Here Vishnu is worshipped

Pas Jagann ath (the Lord of the World) ; an d a

un ’

series of n otable festivals throughout the year keep upa con tinual roun d of religious excitemen t

,culmin ating

in the famous Car Festival,atten ded by something like

pilgrims . There seems little doubt that Puri wasa Buddhist san ctuary

,to the reputation of which Jagan

n ath has succeeded .

”

The presen t temple dates from theend of the twelfth cen tury

,an d is a pyramidal building

on a site -about twen ty feet above the surroun d The great,

ing coun try . Vishnu worship was greatly temple

modified by Chaitanya,who taught that faith an d love

were more acceptable to the deity than pen an ce and rites .The temple already had a large double en closure withlofty walls ; and Chaitanya taught that within it m en

of all castes were equal,an d might eat together of the

sacred food . Altogether the worship of Jagann ath hecame that of"a gen tle

,gen ial deity with human feelings

an d sympathies,an d having n o trace of those blood

thirsty qualities gen erally associated in this coun try withthe “car ofJuggern aut . No doubt the gen ial has becomethe jovial and the voluptuous with many of the worshippers

,and the worship itself is accused of licen tiousn ess

,

but as, warmly defended from the charge by some whohave had good opportun ities of kn owing .

The inn er en closure of the great temple,n early four

hundred by three hundred feet,in cludes a number of

small temples an d sacred places an d trees as well as thelarge temple . The latter con tain s

,

four prin cipal halls,

the Hall of Offerings,the Dan cing Hall for amusemen ts

,

the audien ce chamber,an d the Shrin e proper

,b oth theH

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Ioo zMODERN HTND UJ SM :

Sn an J atra,when the images are bathed with sacred

water and beautifully dressed,after which they are sup

posed to have taken a fever from exposure an d are putin a S ick chamber for a fortn ight

,durin g which time

they are repain ted ; an d then follows the B ath Jatra,or

The Car Car Festival,when the gods are taken for a

Festival ride on their cars . These chariots have oftenbeen described ; they are of immen s e weight and cumb rousn ess

,that of Jagan n ath being forty-fiv e feet high

,

an d having Sixteen wheels . Amid an en orm ous concoursethe images are placed on the cars

,and dressed

,and have

golden han ds and arms attached to t hem . When thisis complete

,the chief guardian of the temple

,the Kurda

Raja,termed “ the sweeper of the temple

,

” sweeps theroad for on e hun dred ‘yards in fron t of the cars

,worships

the images,and touches the ropes of the car as if he

were dragging them ; then hun dreds of Hin dus Speciallyset apart for the offi ce

,aided by the attend an t pilgrims

,

drag the car slowly to a set of temples about two milesdistan t . Thi s great effort

,however

,occupies four days

,

an d on arrival at the destin ation the image of Lakshmiis taken to see Jagann ath. After four or five days thereturn j ourn ey takes place

“

. It is at this festival thatR eported

immolation s of pilgrims have been supposedimmslletion , to take place as part of the routin e

,so that

Of w cums ’ the car of Juggern aut has become with manyalmost syn onymous with a system of ruthless crushingof human victims but this is really con trary to the spiritof the worship of Vishnu . No doubt self- immolation hasn ot unfrequen tly taken place

,because the worshippers

felt their'

sin s were all aton ed for,and they did n ot wish

to return to the world to commit fresh sin s ; and in thecrowds many have n o doubt been acciden tally crushedto death ; but human sacrifice is n ot in culcated by thepriests n or in any way encouraged by them,

for a dropof blood spil t in the presen ce of Jagann ath pollutespriests

,people

,and con secrated food . If a death takes

place within the precin cts of the temple,the worship

is sudden ly stopped,and the offerings are taken away

from the Sight of the offended deity . There is an almost

VJSHNU TE/MPLE A T TRTCHZN OP OLY. 1 0 1

con tinual roun d of festivals at Puri,which in deed lives

on its religious character , having n o other attraction .

Other n otable localities for pilgrimages are the greattemples of Tanjore

,Madura

,an d R am esv ara (an islan d

between In dia and Ceylon ) , these being seats of Sivaworship . It is a great pilgrims ’ feat to visit Ben ares an dbring from then ce a pot of Ganges water to R am esv ara

,

to pour it on the symbol of Siva and then bathe in thesea

,of course with paymen t of fees . S ir Mon ier-Wil liams

relates a touching in ciden t in conn ection with A touchmgthi s . Shortly before my arrival at the temple mement

a father and son had just completed their self- imposedtask

,an d after mon ths of hard walking succeeded in

tran sporting their precious burden of Ganges water t othe other side of the chann el . The longed-for goal wasn early reached an d the temple of R amesv ara already insight

,when the father di ed suddenly on the road

,leaving

his son,a mere child

,utterly destitute an d unprotected .

The b Oy,however

,had on e treasure left— his jar of

Ganges water. This,if on ly it could be poured upon

the sacred symbol,would prove a complete pan acea for

all his earthly troubles . Eagerly he grasped his b urden on ce more and hurried on to the shrin e . Imagin ethe child’s outburst of passion ate grief when the doorwas closed again st him . He had n o fee for the presidingriest.

”

pThe most remarkable Vishnu temple in southern In dia

is that of Sri-rangam ,at Trichin opoly . It has a vast

series of seven . en closures on e within an other, Vishnu

in which hun dreds of Brahman s live . The temple at

corn ers of the four gateways of each square“1011 111 010 013”

have splen did pyramidal towers . The whole is supposedto represen t Vishnu ’

s heaven . The prin cipal image islying down

,an d believed to be immovable— of course

with a legen d to accoun t for the position,an d there is a

shrin e over it in the shape of the syllable Om . A secon dimage of Vishnu is kept for carrying in procession s at

the Car Festival,etc . The crown of the idol is covered

with diamon ds,pearls

,an d rubies

,an d the other orn a

men ts are equal ly rich . Temples like this main tain large

o z MODERN HIND

bands of musician s and troops of dan cing girls,to take

part in the festivals .We must n ow give some brief accoun t of the sects

in to which the Hin dus are divided . To some exten t theseVishnuite follow lin es already in dicated

,as worshipping

SeCtS Vishnu or other gods un der differen t man ifestation s

,

”

or followin g the teaching of particular reformers .Thus

,to begin with the Vishnuite sects , there are the

R amanuj as , or followers of R amanuj a, the Raman an dis ,the Kabir Pan this , an d numerous other sects founded byin dividuals . All these have special marks which mustbe pain ted on their foreheads , after b athing at the greatfestivals

,with a special white earth . The R amanujas ,

for in stan ce,are distinguished by two perpen dicular lines

passing from the roots of the hair to the eyebrows , and atransverse lin e across the top of the n ose conn ecting theother two . In the cen tre is a tran sverse streak of red .

They are also marked with patches of red and white onthe breast an d arms

,supposed to represen t certain sign s

of Vishnu . Their chief special belief is that Vishnuis Brahman

,the supreme Being . The Raman andis speci

ally worship Vishnu as Ramachandra , with Sita his wife .

This sect has many mon asteries, and m any travellingmembers

,who collect offerings and visit shrin es

,all these

being celibate’s . They practically disregard caste . The

Kabir Panthis , following Kabir, believe in on e god, an d

n eed n ot join in the outward worship of the Hindudeities ; but they sing hymn s to Kabir

,their founder .

Their moral code is excellen t,in cluding truth

,human ity

,

and hatred of violen ce .

There are very many worshippers of Vishnu un der theform of the infan t GOpal, child of the cowherd . Thissect

,foun ded by Vishnu Swami and exten ded by Val

labha,is n otable for its b elief in costly apparel and liberal

feeding as meritorious , in opposition to asceticism . Thechief temple of GOpal is in Ajmir .

The Madvas of Southern In dia are followers of Madhava

,said to have been an in carn ation of the god Vayu

in the 12th cen tury . They wear a single cloth of a dirty

yellow colour, go bareheaded, an d have the symb ols of

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1 0 4 [MODE RN HLVD UJ SM .

Vishnu stamped with a red-hot iron on their shouldersor breast . They worship a plurality of gods

,b ut teach

that the human spirit is distin ct from the Divin e Spirit,

though un ited to it,an d that absorption in the godhead

is impossible,thus differing markedly from the ordin ary

Hin du b elief.The majority of the Vishnu worshippers of Bengal

belong to the sect foun ded by Chaitanya,whose influen ce

raised the festivals of Puri to such popularity . His followers believe that Vishnu is the supreme soul and theon e substan ce 1n the un iverse

,an d that Chaitanya was

an in carn ation of him . They also lay great stress uponbakti

,or faith

,of which there are five degrees : (1 ) peace ,

calm con templation ; (2) servitude ; (8) frien dship ; (4)filial affection ; (5) sweetn ess . Their cult is a joyouson e

,qualified by the n ecessity of implicit obedien ce to

the guru . Caste is laid aside at their feasts .The distinguishing marks of the Sivaitic sects are

horizon tal lin es in stead of perpen dicular an d differen cesS ivaitic of width and colour indi cate the particular590153 sect . The Sivaites are very largely Brah

man s,and the sects are n ot so exten siv e an d popular as

those of the Vishnuites . Among them are the Dan dis,

or staff bearers,mendi can ts who spen d most of their time

in meditation . Often they become almost idiotic fromtheir perpetual suppression of thought an d Speech . TheYogis are an other sect of m editation ists with very specialregulation s

,whi ch are believed to give them the power

of levitation,of travelling immen se di stan ces in stan tly

,

of ren dering themselves invisible,etc . Many of them

are practically jugglers an d fortun e- tellers,travelling

about and practisin g on popular credulity .

The Saktas in clude those sects specially devoted to theworship of female for-ms of the deity

,such as Sarasvati

,

Lakshmi,Sita

,Parvati

,Durga

,Kali

,etc . The

Saktas look upon their female deity as theactive en ergy Of all things

,an d the source of all bein gs

,

for without the female elemen t they could n o t be born .

It is chiefly in modern books termed Tan tras that theseviews are taught . They have been called the Bible of

The Saktas.

THE SJKHS . 1 0 5

the Saktas,an d are akin to the Puran as in parts

,b ut in

others deal largely with the peculiar rites of the Sak tas,

and charms and spell s,mostly being in the form of dia

logn es between Siva an d his wife . No doubt in thiscultus the lowest g1 ade of Hin duism was reached . It

upholds and propagates the most unbridled ideas of sen

suality,in the belief that to in dulge the grossest appetites

with the min d fixed on he supreme Being w as the mostpious act possib le . The drinking of alcoholic liquorsforms a great elemen t in Sakti worship

,as well as the

eating of meat. The powers supposed to be acquired bymeditating on the texts an d spells of the Tan tras outdoanything imagin able . By them it is possible to predictthe , future

,work more won ders than the gods

,in spire

any on e with love,turn plan ts in to meal , etc . C1 edulity

cann ot go farther than 1n the case of the believers 1n

Saktism . It is believed,however

,that the spread of

education by the English has don e in uch to dimin ish thesway of these baleful n otion s .Here we may call atten tion to an opposite phenomen on

in modern Hin duism— the spread of theistic sects of an

in creasingly pure ten den cy . The Sikhs of thePunj aub owe their r1se to Nan ak

,a follower

of Kabir in the 15th cen tury,bor1i n ot far from Lahore

in 1469. He became a guru or teacher,and his followers

w ei e termed Sikhs or disciples . He taught a religionfree from caste an d idolati y, having been largely 1n

fluen ced by the g1 owmg Mohammedan ism aroun d him ;b ut he still 1 em ain ed more of a pan theist than a mon otheist

,an d he taught that God should be especially

worshipped un der the n ame of Hari,on e of the titles of

Vishnu . After his death there succeeded him a lin e of

chief gurus,who

,at first frien dly

,developed great hos

tility to the Mohammedan s , an d b ecame largely militaryleaders . Their political history must be read elsewhere .

The fourth guru,Ram- das

,se t up a lake temple in the

sacred tank at Umritsur,which became the head- quarters

of the Sikhs . The fifth guru,Arjun

,compiled the first

Sikh bible largely from the precepts of his predecessors .

Govind,the ten th guru

,compiled a secon d b ook or sup

The Sikhs .

1 0 6 [MODERN HIND UJ SAI .

plemen t,devised a form of baptism

,imposed a vow n ot

to worship idols,to bow to n o on e but a Sikh Guru

,an d

in many ways cemen ted the bon ds of the party . War

was made a religious duty ; an d while Govin d refused ton ame a successor as guru

,he created the Sikh bible (or

The Sikh Gran th), a perman en t ob j ect of worship withb l b le the title Sahib . Hen ceforth it was to be their

infallible guide ; whatever they asked it would showthem . The Sikh bible 1s written 111 the old Hin di dialect

,

with a peculiar mode of writing . It declares the un ityof God

,b ut i s based on pan theistic ideas . Many of the

n ames of Vishnu are accepted as n ames of the supreme

Deity . It forbids image worship,but the way in which

the Gran th itself is worshipped,dressed

,an d decorated

,

goes far to elevate it in to an idol . Many ordin ary Hin dusuperstition s are in cluded in it

,such as the belief in the

san ctity of the cow,the vast number of tran smigration s

of souls,an d complete submission to the guru . In recen t

years the Sikh faith has very con siderably retrogradedtowards Vishnuism . Many Sikhs n ow adopt caste

,wear

the Brahman ical thread,an d observe Hin du festivals and

ceremon ies . There is a n otable temple to Govind at

Patn a con tain ing many remain s of him . The temple at

Umritsur is on e of the most strikin g sights in In dia ; itis dedicated to the on e god un der his n ame Hari ; b ut heis believed to be visibly represen ted by the Sacred Book .

A very sign ifican t developmen t of modern Hin dui sm isthat represen ted by the Brahmo Somaj

,which represen ts

The Brahma a revival of the theism to be foun d in theSomaj Vedas

,in fluen ced n ot a little by the teaching

of Christianity . Rammohun Roy (born -17 foun derof the Brahmo Somaj

,was a high- caste Brahman

,son of

a Vishn u worshipper,an d highly educated in Persian

,

Rammohun Arabic , and San skrit . At the age of sixteenR OY he wrote a tract again st idolatry, an d excited

such opposition that he left home for some years,studying

Buddhism in Tibet . He afterwards studied English,

obtain ed governmen t employmen t,an d mixed with Euro

pean s . After his father ’s death he was more free in hisopposition to what he con sidered perversion s of the true

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1 0 8 [MODERN HZND UIS 111 .

min ister was appoin ted,and by 1847

,767 person s had

taken the vows,while many others adhered to them .

About 1850 it was decided that the Vedas were n ot in

fallible,an d that on ly such views as were in harmony

with Theistic truth were to be accepted from them . Approved extracts were made from the Vedas

,Manu

,the

Satapatha ,Brahman a

,etc . The views of the church

include the Fatherhood of God,who has n ever become

in carn ate,but whose providen ce is over his creatures ,

an d who hears their prayers . Repen tan ce is the on e

path of aton emen t , forgiven ess , an d salvation . The on lyn ecessary religious deeds are good works

,charity

,con

templation and devotion,an d the attainmen t of kn ow

ledge , all pen an ces and pilgrimages being useless . The

only sacrific e is self- sacrifice,the on ly temple i s the pure

heart . Caste is n ot ackn owledged .

W ith all these advan ced V i ew s, p

much tacit recogn itionof Hinduism

,and even con formity with it was still main

Keshub tain ed ; and in 1865 a n ew reformer proclaimedChunder his mission

,the well-kn own Keshub Chun der

sen' S en,imbued with more advan ced views as

well as a more emotion al an d spiritual n ature . Hewished to abolish all caste Observan ces

,and this led to a

rupture . A n ew form of in itiation,the admission of

women,and the reform of marriage Observan ces follow ed ;

but after VlgOI'

OUS work for a number of years,Keshub

agreed to the marriage of his daughter while a’ child tothe Maharajah of Kuch Behar

,at which some Hin du

ceremon ies were observed,an d this caused much scan dal .

Nevertheless his church,the Progressw e Brahmo Somaj

of In dia,showed much vitality un der his almost autocratic

rule up to his death on January 8th,1884 . The origin al

society,n ow kn own as the Adi Somaj

,con tinues un der

the g uidan ce of Dev endra Nath Tagore,b ut has some

what gon e back t owards Hin duism . Keshub had theskill to in troduce n ew festivals to replace the older Hin ducelebration s

,including religious meetin gs with public

procession s, music , an d singin g . He also professed himself in spired to put down sectarian ism and discord b etween sects . His influen ce still lives ; the apostolic

TEM PLE OF A’

ALJ,RAj GRJHA ,

[NDJA 1 0 9

1 0 M ODERN HJND UISM

Durbar of his church refused to allow the platform fromwhich he taught to be used

,an d declared that Keshub

was still the leader of the church . It would be curiousto n ote if this is followe d by any further step towardshis deification .

The party who left Keshub after the marriage of hisdaughter have formed a stronger church than the on e

Thethey left

,un der the title of the Un iversal

Universal Somaj . They have adopted a sort of presbyS°ma3° terian governmen t

,to preven t the autocratic

rule of on e man,and on ly those who have given up

idolatry and caste in private as well as in public can beoffice -bearers . Altogether there are about strictmembers an d adheren ts of these various Theisticbodies in In dia , distributed over 178 churches .We have said little hitherto of certain common n otion s

of the Hin dus ,which howev er in fluen ce them very greatlyan d hin der improvemen t . For in stan ce

,fatal

ism is on e of their strongest beliefs . All aman ’s life is con trolled by the D eity

,and it is fruitless

for man to oppose the decrees of‘

God. It is this resign ation to fate which so largely paralyses the efforts of thepeople

,especially in regard to sickn ess . The belief in

Maya, or Maya , or illusion ,is an other of their beliefs .

11111 5310“ It is said that all mankin d are the victims ofillusion

,especially in imagin ing themselves to be some

thing differen t from God . It is commonly said that thesupreme Being was tired of being alon e

,an d formed the

world as a sport or amusemen t,and that all the miseries

of life came from Maya,the c reatures being ign oran t

that they are really on e with God .

Again,belief in the tran smigration of souls pervades

all In dia . It will be foun d to con stitute a promin en tfeature in Buddhism . We may here briefly state theTransmigra essen tial details of the creed . Existen ce after

tion death is\

a m atter of course . A predomin an tlygood life is rewarded with heaven

,an evil life with hell .

Rewards After a longer or shorter t ime the soul return s

o

and to earth to be re-born in a higher or lowerPun‘Shments'

station,according to its good or evil deeds .

Fatalism.

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1 2 M ODERN HZND

To such an exten t can the policy of frightening peoplein to goodn ess

,or rather in to complian ce w ith priestly

deman ds,be developed Happily the Hin dus

,as a

rule,do n ot remember the sufferings of their imagin ary

previous lives or con dition s ; an d i t is a ready way of

accoun ting for any misfortun e to say that it is a pun ishmen t for sin s committed m a former life .

With such vi ews it is n ot surprising that death an d

its approach should be made the occasion for en deavouringto obtain future ben efits

,or relief from pen al

ties . The Hin du is taught that after deathSpirit will wan der 1n wretchedn ess

,un less he dies n ear

the Ganges or some holy stream,or un less his body is

burn ed on its banks,or at any rate n ear some water

,an d

some portion of his ashes must be thrown in to it . Thisleads to a custom of exposin g the dying on the banks ofrivers . Long rows of steps lin e the banks an d rudebuildings

,used for the dying to lie in

,called ghats . The

ben efits of so dying are represen ted as so great,that

relatives often believe it to be the greatest kin dn ess toexpose them

,often carryin g them through terrible heat

,

and exposing them at,immin en t risk . Great numbers

of liv es have been sacrificed in this way when the di seasewas by n o mean s mortal ; the word of the n ative doctorsis taken as sufficien t

,and great haste is made lest the

patien t Should die at home . The whole scen e is repulsivean d 1njurious

.

in the highest degree . A few minutesbefore death i s expected the victim 1S brought down tothe brink of the r1v er

,where he dies more or less im

m ersed in the stream . No doubt 111 some cases advan tageis taken of these circumstan ces to admini ster poison . A

n ative writer says : “Person s en trusted with the carean d nursing of a dying man at the burn in g ghat soonget tired of their charge (n o women being allowed to bethere) ; an d rather than m in ister to his comforts

,are

kn own to resort to artificial mean s . The proc ess of im

mersion is an other n ame for suffocation .

” So ten aciousare some people of life

,that they will sometimes survive

n in e or t en immersion s,and be brought home again ; but

their con tinued life i s con sidered disgraceful .

Death.

The b urn ing of the corpse follows quickly Ja e higherThe corpse is removed from its rest ing-place t howburn ing ghat

, a distan ce of a few hun dredyards

,an d

l

preparation s for a fun eral pile arespeedily made . The body is then covered with a pieceof n ew cloth an d laid upon the pyre

,the upper and lower

parts of which are composed of firew ood,faggots

,an d

a little san dalwood and glue to n eutralise the smell . TheMan ipora Brahman ,

an outcaste,reads the formula

,an d

the son,or

*~

n earest of kin,changing his old garmen ts for

n ew white clothes,at on e end of whi ch is fasten ed an

iron key to keep of evil spirits,sets fire to the pile . The

b ody is con sumed to ashes,the portion remain ing unburn t

is thr own in to the river . The son,after pouring a few

jars of holy water on the pile,bathes in the stream an d

return s home with his frien ds . Then follow wildpression s of grief on the part of the women . Often the

family cann ot afford to b uy en ough wood to con sume thecorpse

,and part is left for jackals an d vultures . The

Brahman s of course go through much more elaboratefun eral ceremon ies than are here in dicated .

After the cremation come the Shradda,or ceremon ies

for the ben efit of the dead ; these may be comparativelyin expen sive

,or may be made the occasion of

Ceremonieslavish expen diture . On the thirtieth day after for the

death,offerings of food

,sweetmeats

,e tc .

,are dead ‘

made to the spirit of the deceased an d his or her an cestors,

and at the same time a number of Brahman s an d person sof other castes are en tertain ed . These ceremon ies areeviden tly much akin to the an cestor-worship of theChin ese

,as already detailed

,Showing how powerful a

factor this reveren ce for an cestra l Spirits has been in

races very dissimilar . On e of the prayers is “May thosein my family who have been burn t with fire

,or who

are alive who are ye t unburn t , be satisfied with the foodpresen ted on the groun d

,and proceed con ten ted towards

the supreme path"May those who have n o father n ormother

,n or kin sman

,nor food

,n or supply of n ourishmen t

,

be con ten ted with this food offered on the groun d,and

attam like it, a happy abode"” Some of the food is cast

Cremation .

1 1 2 M O

M ODERN HTND UJ SAT.

To su ch an ext

in to goodn mi re, bywhich mean s it is supposed to reach thosdeman d-

0 41 0 111 1t i s in ten ded . Brahman s repeat these cererule .

Jn ies frequen tly in the first year after death,an d afte

TV wards annually . The title to property is most in timatel

boun d up with the fun eral rites . On ly a son or n ea

m ale relative is properly qualified to perform them ; b uif males fail

,females or other heirs may un dertake th

duty . Large promises are made in the Puran as an

other sacred books to those who properly perform thShradda rites in cluding the forgiven ess of all their owSi n s . The details

,like those of all religious matters i

so religi ous a people,are far too lengthy to be given .

What about the in fluen ce of Hin du religiou s ideas upotheir moral con dition ? Many writers agree that this i

boun d up with the position of women,an d tha

un til they are freed and elevated n o perman en

improvemen t can be made . Here is an extract fromHin du lady ’s book

Ion the duties of wives . The husban

is the wife ’s religion,the wife ’s Sole busin ess

,the wife ’

Condition of all- in - all . The wife Should meditate on heWives husban d as Brahma . For her

,all pilgrimage

Should be con cen trated on her husban d ’s foot . The comman d of a husban d is as obligatory as a precept of th

Vedas . To a chaste wife her husban d is her god . Wherthe husb an d is pleased

,Brahma is pleased . The husban

is the wife ’s guru,her hon our

,the giver of her happin ess

the bestower of fortun e,righteousn ess

,an d heaven

,he

deliverer from sorrow and from S in .

”

"Of course the seclusion of women is n ot gen erally pos

Sible among the lower classes,b ut it is often aimed a

Position of by them ; and the full con sequen ces of thwomen belief that the birth of a girl is a misfortun e

follow most In dian women through life . On the con traryHin du women pray

,

‘ make pilgrimages,fast

,an d make

costly offerings ; that they may have son s _who can b yperforming the Shradda rites deliver their an cestors fromsufferings after death . All a girl ’s worship is directedtowards obtain ing good husban ds and

,son s

,by a series

of rites which we cann ot particularise - n or can ween large upon the evils of girl marriages (at the age of

Moral state.

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1 16 M ODE RN HIND I/1 5 144 .

frequen tly She is the subject of painful tyranny and

abuse on the part of the older women of the zen an a .

Yet the life of a Hin du wife is heaven compared withthat of a childless widow . The faithful wifewas long expected to sacrifice herself on his

fun eral pil e (suttee), and, according as She did it or n ot,

was lauded or cursed . Many widows in the past,from

lack of courage to perform what they vowed,had them

selves drugged and forcibly immolated . Frequen tlywidows would most calmly an d impassion ately devote

themselves to the fire,n ever giving a cry or

a sigh of pain . So powerfully can the beliefthat they are doing what i s pleasin g to the gods and theirdeceased husban ds work upon the Hin du women . In

1880 suttee was prohibited in States un der British rule ;b ut

'

it was still practised in some of the n ative States .Mr . Wilkin s states that the last case he heard of wasabout 1880 .

The extreme difficulty experi en ced in abolishing sutteeis explain ed by the treatmen t to which surviving widowsare subjected

,especially childless widows

,who are for

bidden to marry again,an d become the household drudges

an d objects of scorn of the zen an a . On e meal a day,with

a fast for two days a mon th,is their hard lot ; with the

deprivation of orn amen ts an d of every pleasure . In manycases the

‘

sufferings of a widow are such that she wouldgladly die . No doubt the older widows are able to assertthemselves

,and in time gain influen ce . But en ough has

been said to Show that the key to much of the religiousand social question in In dia is boun d up with the con

dition and education of women . Some improvemen t hasalready come with the improved education of the betterclasses

,an d the partial open ing of the zen an as to European

ladies an d to lady doctors ; an d herein lies great hOpe forthe futureThe Hin du system is such that merit an d pardon can

Disconnection be obtain ed for gross offen ces w ithout any re

of morals and form of heart an d life . Thus i t i s n ot surpri srehgmn’ ing that theft, dishon esty , lyin g , ingratitude ,

forgery,perjury, revenge , cruelty, and personal immorality

Widows.

Suttee.

HINDU WE TUE S . 1 1 7

are very rife among them . Mr .Wilkin s says : “It does n otsurprise me at all to fin d the Hin dus morally what theyare

,as I remember that whilst their books con tain some

of the highest and n oblest moral precepts, their deities ,when in carnate

,are described as ign oring these beautiful

moral lesson s an d still further,when I see

‘

that religionan d morality are quite separate in their view.

When a Hin du ’s anger is excited,truth

,honour

,trust

all are forgotten,and n o mean s are left un employed that

can in jure an en emy . The term ‘mild Hin du,

’ certain lyis the purest sarcasm ; they submit to Oppression an d

cruelty because they are physically in capable of resistan ce . On ly give them the opportun ity to avenge themselves and to oppose others

,an d certain ly they are as

vin di ctive in their way as any race of m en on earth .

They do n ot use the kn ife or the dagger,it is true

,but

they resort to poison ,and

,what is sometimes even worse

,

the poison of their own un truthful tongues .” On the

other han d,we must credit the Hin dus with Hindu

much fratern al affection and filial regard,much Virtues"

charity in the form of gifts,great patien ce

,in dustry

,and

ingenuity . Out of these elemen ts and their great in tellectual powers we may hope that there may yet arise an ation mighty in goodn ess and n oble in character.

[In addition to works referred to in the previous chapter, the followingare valuab le : B ose

’s The Hindus as They Are H . H . Wilson ’

s“Hindu

Sects M edical J urisprudence ,”byDr. Norman Chevers Dr . Lall Mittra

on Orissa R ev . T . E . Slater’

s“ Life of Keshub Chundra Sen ”

; manyarticles in The Calcutta R 60 26 20 .]

CHAPTER V.

i ffe Of 151mm.

The soil prepared—The founder ’s period—R eal existence Of Buddha—Buddhist sacred b ooks—The native land of Buddha—His youth and earlylife—The great renunciation—His long retirement—His enlightenment—His temptation—Opening of his mission —The eightfold path—Theorigin of sufi ering—The freedom of Buddhism—Early converts—Generalfeatures of Buddha

’s life—Alternation of itinerancy with rest—The Bud

dhist gardens—Buddha and the courtesan Amb apali—Anxious inquirers- The new order of monks—Buddha not a social ist—Buddha’

s principal

adherents—Lay b elievers—eWOmen and Buddhism—Reception of sisters

or nuns—Opposition—Brahmans confuted—The b est sacrifi ce—MethodOf teaching—Long-drawn dissertations—A nob le youth

’

s conversion

Socratic method—Parab les—The b ook of the Great Decease - Buddha

prepares for his final discourse—His last temptation—His death.

HAT Buddhism arose in a coun try and among peoplesaturated with Brahman ism

,

1 as we have describedit,must n ever be forgotten in con templating its rise andThe son developmen t . Without pre- existin g BrahmanPrepared ism it would have lacked its most

“

essen tialelemen ts

,its m ison d

’é tre . The higher Brahman phi~

lOSOphy had already merged the multitude of early Vedi cgods in to the Un iversal Spirit

,and had developed v ery

con siderab ly their Pan theistic system ; but at the sametime the fetters of Brahman con trol

,the observan ce of

expen sive and frequen t rites,the obligation to obey the

Vedic teaching and the authorised commen ts upon itwere made more and more strict and on erous ; and a

spirit of reaction n aturally arose . That the reformassociated with the great Buddha ’s n ame was on ly on e

1[Rhys Davids

"‘Hib b ert Lectures .

” Oldenb erg’s“Buddha ” Sacred

Books of the East

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1 2 0 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

of Buddha dating from the same age as the early Palitexts . Such information as they do con tain is rather inan m oiden tal and un conn ected form ; b ut this does n ot

cause us to doubt his havin g existed an d been a religiousl eader

,for at that early period an d among that people

the idea of composin g a biography of a man had n ot

arisen ; and all the an cien t Hi n du books are destitute of

any specimen of an attempt at even a brief biographyof a man . But the existen ce of numerous Buddhi st sacredBuddhist books , the composition of whi ch almost cer

Sacred b ooks-tain ly took place before the coun cil of the sevenhun dred fathers met at Vesali in the fourth cen tury 3 0

,

together with the n ature of their c on ten ts,suffices to

assure us that they represen t the teaching of a greatteacher

,the Buddha

,who preached salvation and deliver

an ce to the people,and was in rivalry or opposition to

Six Other heads of sects,of whom on e

,Nataputta, foun ded

the Jain system,often represen ted as an offshoot of Bud

dhism,though it is rather a represen tative ,of S imilar

ten den cies acting at the same time . ‘ It is eviden t,

”

says Prof. Oldenberg,

“ that Buddha was a head of‘

amon astic order of the very same type as that to whi chNataputta belonged ; that he journ eyed from town totown i n the garb an d with all the extern al circumstan cesof an ascetic

,taught and gathered roun d himself a ban d

of disciples,

“to whom he gave Simple ordin an ces .” Theform in which details con cern ing him have been preserved is chiefiy his discourses an d teaching

,sometimes

doubtfully associated with the n ame of the place wherethey were uttered ; and in addition to this the maineven ts of his life are frequen tly referred to .

The n ative lan d of Buddha was Situated between the

lower Himalayas of Nepal and the middle course of theThe nam e

river Rapti,i n the n orth- east of Oudh . The

land of little river Rohim,which j oin s the Rapti n ear

Buddha“Goruckpore , about 100 miles n orth of Benares ,

is its eastern boun dary . Both the Rohim and the Raptiappear by the same n ames i n early Buddhist literatui e .

In this fertile region,liable to heavy rain s an d long- lying

inundation s,the

b

Aryan trib e or people of the Sakyas

THE GREA T R EN UA’CIA TJ OJV. 1 2 1

(the Powerful), grew rice an d main tain ed a close c on

n ection with the more powerful kingdom of Kosala (Oudh)to the south-west

,which ultimately absorbed them . Al

though it has been widely represen ted that the Buddhawas a king ’

s son,the oldest records “on ly men tion the

father as Suddhodan a, a wealthy lan down er,His youth andon e of whose wives

,Maya

,of the same tribe

,early life.

died soon after the birth of her son,who was n amed

Siddhattha,an d was

often called Sakya,

or Sakya-mum,the

S aky a s ag e ; t h i seven t took place prob ab l y s o m ewh e r eabout 500 Hepassed his youth in

Kapila,the capital of

the Sakyas , and thereis n o early traditionof hi s having becomea V e d i c s tu d e n t ;rather the even ts of

his after- life ten d theother way

,exhibitin g

him as a reformer an dan oppon en t of Brahman ic p r e t e n s i o n s .

He appears to havebeen married

,an d to

have had on e Son,

Rahula,who became

on e of his disciple s ;b ut there is n o ab

solutely certain detail about the reason s and circumstan ceswhi ch led him at the age of twen ty—ni n e to The Great

aban don hi s home,an d become a wan dering Renunciation

ascetic,then ceforward kn own as

,the ascetic Gautama

(pron oun ced Gow tam a) . On e of the earliest records represen ts him as having felt deeply and often meditated on

the weakn ess and decay of old age,and the horror of

SEATED FIGURE OF BUDDHA.

1 2 2 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

sickn ess and death , an d having thus lost the buoyan cyof youth an d the en joymen t of life . Other early recordstell that “ the ascetic Gautama has gon e from home in tohomelessn ess

,while still young

,young in years , in the

bloom of youthful strength , i n the first freshn ess of life .

The asceti c Gautama,although his pai en ts did n ot wish

it,although they shed tears and wept

,has had his hair

and beard Shaved,has put on yellow garm en ts

,and has

gon e from his home in to homelessn ess .” Elsewhere weread

,

“distressin g is life at home,a state of impurity ;

freedom is in leavin g home ; while he reflected thus , heleft his hOme . (O .

Thus seeking Spiritual en lightenm en t,freedom

,deliver

an ce,Gautama travelled during a period of seven years

,

HIS long re placing himself in succession under two n otabletlrement teachers . Leavmg them without being satis

fi ed,he travelled through the kin gdom of Magadha, an d

arrived at the town of Uruv ela. There,in a beautiful

forest lan d,he spen t many years in self-disciplin e

,repres

sing and curbing his desires an d aspiration s,an d waiting

for supreme en lightenmen t . Fasting,suppression of the

breath,an d other forms of self-mortification were tried

with the greatest persisten ce,but in vain . Five other

ascetics,who had been his compan ion s for a time

,aban

don ed him . Fin ally came the great crisis,when

,sitting

His enl ight un der a ti ee (the B 0 tree , or Tree of Kn owenmento ledge), he passed through successive stages of

abstraction until he became en lighten ed about the tran smigration s of souls

,and the Four Sacred Truths

, (1) thatsuffering is un iversal in the world

, (2) that its cause isdesire or attachmen t ; (8) that it can b e en ded by Nirvan a ;(4) the way to attaih Nirvan a .

“When I apprehen dedthis

,say the early records

,

“an d when I beheld thi s

,

my soul was released from the evil of desire,released

from the evil of earthly existen ce,released from the evil

of error,released from the ev il of ign oran ce . In the

released awoke the kn owledge of release ; ex tin ct is re

birth,fin ished the sacred course

,duty don e

,n o more Shall

I return to this world ; this I kn ew .

”

(O .) He had b ecome the B uddha

, i

the awaken ed,the en lighten ed .

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1 2 4 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

gratificati on here an d there ; the thirst for pleasures , thethirst for bein g

,the thirst for power .

”

“This,0 monks

,i s the sacred truth of the extin ction

of suffering,the extin ction of thi s thirst by complete

annihi lation of desir e,letting it go

,expelling it

,separating

on eself from it,givin g it n o room .

” He then expoundedto them the eightfold path

,by which he had attain ed

the supreme Buddhahood in this world an d the worldsof gods .

‘

Hen ceforth there was for him n o n ew birth .

The n ew doctrin e is summed up thus Walk in purity,

to make an en d of all suffering .

’

The five ascetics being the first cOnv erts,others soon

began to flock roun d them,and Buddha sen t them forth

The freedom to preach in the surroundin g coun try . A con

Of Budd-nism Spicuous feature in their teachin g , con trastingmarkedly with that of the Brahman s

,was their freedom

from con strain t,from forms

,from ceremon ies

,from Phar

isaism .

“I am loosed from all ban ds,divin e an d human

,

”

says Buddha .

“Ye also,0 disciples

,are loosed from all

ban ds divin e and human . Go ye out,0 disciples

,an d

travel from place to place for the welfare of many people,

for the joy of many people,in pity for the world

,for the

blessing,welfare

,an d joy of gods and men . Go n ot in

twos to on e place .

”

Return in g then to Uruv ela,where he had en tered in to

the kn owledge of deliveran ce,he preaches to a ban d of

Early

"

ascetics,whose leader

,Kassapa

,he converts

converts~ after performin g numerous miracles,according

to the records . The whole body then proceeded to Rajagaha

,the capital of Magadha (Behar), whose king , Bim

bisara,he converted this was followed by the conversion

of many of the n oble youths of Magadha, so much so asto lead 'to much murmuring

,the people fearing that the

ascetic was come to bring childlessn ess and widowhoodand the subversion of families .From this time forward we can frame n o proper history

General of Buddha ’s life ; b ut from the early recordsfeatures of about him it is easy to realise the gen eral

Buddha’

s ufe'n ature of hi s career

,although without those

touches of in dividuality which Hebrews an d European s

THE B UDDHIS T GARDENS . 1 2 5

so well kn ew how to han d down,b ut whi ch have scarcely

been n oted by the Hi n du s and Chin ese . This is partlybecause in dividuality

,as we un derstan d it

,w as largely

un developed among them . Thei r civili sation createdtypes rather than individuals

,accustomed con tinually to

do the same thin g,feel similarly

,an d think alike . But

on e thin g is certain ; in early Buddhism there is littletrace of a con tradi ctory Spirit within the order

,n o trace

of a disciple developing the master ’s teaching in n ew

an d un expected direction s,or making himself a secon d

foun der . Whether Buddha himself was all that he isdescribed in the earliest records or n ot

,he has n o rival

,

an d hi s disciples closely imitated what they beli eved himto have said or don e . Thus the picture of Buddha’s lifew ill describe much of that of hi s immediate disciples .

The con trast of the prin cipal In dian season s marksthe two chi ef altern ation s in Buddha ’s life . The thr ee1 ainy mon ths n ecessitated a season of i est an d Alternatmn ofretiremen t in or n ear town s and villages ; an d itin erancy

thi s period was devoted partly to teaching the mm“ St

di sciples who fiocked roun d him . The rest of the yearwas spen t by Buddha in trav ellin g from place to place

,

attended by disciples,throughout the kin gdoms of Kosala

an d Magadha an d their n eighbourhood,chiefly comprised

within Oudh an d Behar . They do n ot appear to haveen tered Western Hin dustan where Brahman ism had itsstronghold . Near the chi ef cities of these kin gdoms

,

Sav atthi (n ow S ahet Mahet on the Rapti), and R aj agaha(n ow Rajgir) , pleasan t garden s were given to Buddhaan d his followers

,well provided with places for lodging

,

eating,and assembling . We may gather some idea of

what these places were like from a description The Buddhi st

in on e of the early Buddhi st books . “Not too gardens

far from,n or yet too n ear the town

,well provided with

en tran ces an d exits,easily accessible to all people who

inquir e after it,with n ot too much of the bustle of life

by day,quiet by night

,far from commotion an d the

crowds of m en,a place of retiremen t

,a good spot for

solitary meditation . Here were beautiful groves of trees,

pools in whi ch the symbolic lotus grew ,and every con

1 2 6 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

v en ien ce for meetings and such on a smaller scale wereprovided in many other places . Among -the visitors werestr angers from distan t coun tries

,and those who had

accepted the teaching of his disciples an d longed to seehim ; even kings and chiefs thronged to see him and tohear his teaching . In s ome cases the rulers of a towncomman ded every inhabitan t to go forth and meet theExalted On e when arrivin g

,un der a heavy pen alty .

On e of the most remarkable records in the Buddhistbooks is that relating the conversion of a courtesan

,and

Buddha andhis preferen ce of her invitation to that of the

the courtesan n oblest people . This has b een compared to aAmb apah ' well-known in ciden t in the life of Christ ; b utit must be confessed that the resemblan ce is b ut superfi cial . The following. is abridged from the Book of the

Great Decease .

”

“Now the-

c ourtesan Amb apali heard that the BlessedOn e had arrived at Vesali an d was staying at her mangogrove . An d ordering a number of magn ificen t vehiclesto be

'

made ready,she moun ted on e of them

,and pro

c eeded with her train towards her garden . She went inthe carriage as far as the groun d was passable for car

riages ; there She alighted , an d she proceeded on foot tothe place where the B lessed On e was

,and took her

‘

seatrespectfu lly on on e Side

,and when she was thus seated

,

the Blessed On e in structed,aroused

,in cited , and glad

den ed her with religious discourse .

Then She,in structed

,aroused

,in cited

,and gladden ed

with his words —addressed the Blessed On e an d said“ ‘May the Blessed On e do me the honour of taking hismeal

,together with the brethren

,at my house to

morrow .

’

‘And the Blessed One gave by silen ce his c on sen t .Then when Amb apali, the courtesan ,

saw that the BlessedOn e had con sen ted

,she rose from her seat and bowed

down before him ; an d keeping him on her right han das She passed him

,She departed then c

Now the Likhav is of Vesali (rich n oble youths) heardthat the Blessed On e had arrived at Vesali

,an d was

staying at Amb apali’s grove

,and proceeded to invite

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2 8 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

at its highest poin t,an d his n ame was n amed throughout

In dia among the foremost n ame s,on e might day by

day see that man before whom kings bowed themselves,

walkin g about,alms-bowl in han d

,through streets an d

alleys,from house to house

,an d w ithout uttering any

request,with down cast look

,stan d silen tly waiting un til

a morsel of food was thrown in to his bowl .”

But the great achievemen t of Buddha,apart from his

doctrin e,was his formation of a n ew society, composed

The new order Of the Bhikkhu OI‘ t ggll , W t h Cann ot be

Of monks accurately ren dered i n its Buddhist sen se . It

has often been ren dered “monks,

”but literally it sign ifies

beggar,

” “men dican t .

” Yet they did n ot,strictly speak

ing, beg at all ; they had given up all worldly things ,but were n ot secluded from society

,an d hen ce were n0t

strictly monks they took n o vow of obedien ce,and could

leave the order when they chose . They were n ot priests ,as they had no rites to admin ister

,an d were n ot in any

sen se the vehicle of the worship of others . Perhaps theterms “brethren or members of the Order ” would b eleast misleading ; b ut the n ame of monk is most used .

Their outward sign s of membership were the ton sure and

a yellow garmen t .

That Buddha should So readily have established a

separated Order,Shows that the idea of separation from

the world to lead a religious life had already a wideinfluen ce in his time . It appears to have soon becomea regular thin g for convin ced in quirers to profess theirbelief in the Blessed On e

,an d to ask him to accept them

as disciples an d true believers ; an d he would receivethem in some such form as this Come hither

,O monk ;

well preached is the doctrin e,walk in purity

,to make

an en d of all suffering .

” Having given all his propertyto the Order

,or at any rate havin g ren oun ced it, having

quitted family ties,and vowed to live a life of chastity

,

they in many cases set out on their travels to spread theprin ciples taught by the Buddha . Person al ambition

,

person al exaltation,van ity

,self- seeking

,hen ceforth had

n o place amon g them . Caste was abolished,or rather

ign ored , by these men who had renoun ced the world.

B UDDHA NOT A S OCIALIS T . 1 2 9

Buddha is said to have an swered a king thus : “ If aslave or se i v an t of the king puts on the yellow garmen t

,

an d lives as a monk without reproach in thought,wo rd

,

and deed,wouldest thou then say

,Well then

,let thi s

m an still be my slave an d servan t,to stan d in my presen ce

,

bow bef0 1 e me,take upon himself to perform my behests

,

live to mi n ister to my en joymen ts,speak deferen tially

,

hang upon my word ? ”An d the kin g an swers

,

‘ No,

sire ; I should bow before him ,stan d before him

,invite

him to Sit down,give him what he n eeded in the way

of clothing,food

,Shelter

,an d of medicin e when he is ill

,

and I Shoul d assure him of protection,watch an d ward

,

as is becoming .

”An d thi s treatmen t

,it is inferred

,is

what Buddha approved .

Prof. Oldenberg strongly combats the idea that Buddhawas specially a social reformer

,who broke the chain s of

caste,and raised the poor an d humble to hi s Buddha, not e,

spiritual kingdom . There is n o n otion in his 5 0 011 11513

teaching of upsetting the established order of things an d

supplan tin g it by a n ew on e .

“Buddha ’s spirit wasa stranger to that en thusiasm

,without which n o on e can

pose as the champion of the Oppressed again st the 0ppressor . Let the state an d society remain what they arethe religious man who as a monk has ren oun ced the

world has n o part in its cares and occupation s . Castehas n o value for him

,for everything earthly has ceased

to affect his in terests ; b ut it n ever occurs to him toexercise his influen ce for its abolition or for the mitigation of the severity of its rules for those who have laggedbehin d in worldly surroun dings . It is scarcely eventrue that Buddha practically presen ted an equal fron t toall classes of people . Those who were amon g his earlyc’hosen adheren ts were almost exclusively drawn fromthe upper classes

,n obles

,Brahman s

,merchan ts

,educated

person s . We find in early Buddhist works such phrasesas these : “Truly n ot undesired by the Exalted On e issuch an in terview with such n oble youths . The goodwill of such a respected an d well—kn own person towardsthi s doctrin e and ordin an ce is of the highest importan ce .

”

Scarcely can an isolated story b e foun d of the receptionK

130 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

of a person of very low grade,such as the sweeper- away

of withered flowers from temples an d palaces ; an d in

his case the moral which Specially follows is directedagain st the exclusiven ess of the Brahman s . “By holyzeal an d chaste living

,by restrain t and self- repression

,

thereby a man becomes a Brahman ; that is the highestBrahmanhood .

” The weak and children are scarcelymention ed .

“To the wise belongeth this law,it was

said,

“n ot to the foolish .

”

We n eed only briefly men tion Buddha’s prin cipal adheren ts

,as all resemble on e an other in purity

,in the

Buddha'

sattainmen t of perfect peace

,an d in devotion to

principal Buddha . Sariputta an d Moggallana, early con

adherentsv erts from Brahman ism

,following him through

life,but dying shortly before Buddha ; his own cousin

An an da,and his brother Dev adatta ; Upali , the court

barber of the Sakyas . An an da seems to have servedas person al attendan t to Buddha in his old age , an d tohave often accompani ed him alon e ; to him many of hislast discourses were specially addressed .

“

Dev adatta isthe traditional traitor

,who sought to supplan t his brother

in chief influen ce,and is said to have attempted to kill

him,a project which was frustrated by many recorded

miracles . Devadatta is related to have attempted to

enforce a more ascetic disciplin e on the monks,and to

have failed miserably .

Besides the monks,Buddha recogn ised lay believers

,

those who hon oured his teaching as the truth,b ut who

remain ed in the world,an d were permitted to

give gifts and exercise charity to the brethrenof the Order . In fact this was but a recogn ition of then ecessities of the case . If there were n o adheren ts outsidethe mendi can t members

,and if all other person s were

oppon en ts,there would be little possibility of Supporting

the members ; of course their mai n ten an ce in such a

coun try as In dia cost very little,but still it was n eeded

an d had to be provided . No Special form of receptionof lay- adheren ts was provided

,an d they n ever had any

share in the governmen t of Buddhism . And as withregard to the brethren or m onks

,so with regard to the

Lay-b elievers.

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132 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

groun d that women were capable of realising the fourfold path. He

,however

,imposed upon them eight rules

,

such as that a nun,of however long stan ding

,was always

to serve an d to rise in the presen ce of a monk,even if

on ly just in itiated ; and in several respects nun s wereplaced in subordin ation to the monks ; they must be initiated by monks as well as nun s

,an d receive admon ition

from monks . But Buddha is very mourn ful,and is

represen ted as saying that the good law will n ot now

last more than fi v e hun dred years , AS when mildew or

blight visits a crop,it does n ot last long

,so “un der what

ever disciplin e women are allowed to go forth from thehousehold life in to the homeless state , that religion doesn ot last long . An d just as a man would in an tic ipationbuild an embankmen t to a great reservoir

,so have I laid

down these eight chief rules for the sisters,n ot to b e

overpassed through their life .

” The female disciples wereto adopt the same rules as the m en

,so far as applicable ;

an d the gen eral rule was applied, that whatever doctrin escon duced to peace an d n ot to passion

,to ven eration and

n ot to pride,to wishing for little an d n ot to wishing for

much,to seclusion an d n ot to love of society

,to the

exerci se of zeal an d n ot to sloth,to con ten t an d not to

querulousn ess,these doctrin es were the teaching of the

Master . A great many disabilities an d restriction s as towearing apparel

,decoration of the body an d face

,habits

and occupation s, etc .,were imposed . Nevertheless

,Bud

dha an d his followers frequen tly received large hospitalityfrom women

,who

,however

,were to regard themselves

as ben efited by being allowed to give anything to thesain ts . Visakha

,a rich an d n oble woman of Savatthi

,

volun tarily offered clothing,food

,and medicin e for both

in coming an d out-goin g monks,asking this as a boon .

Buddha’s respon se was : Whatsoev er woman,upright

in life,a di sciple of the Happy On e

,gives

,glad at heart

flit On the Opposite page is represen ted on e of the elaborate gate

w ays of a solid stupa or tope , as o ld as Asoka’s time ; the s culptures

on the gateways (about 85 feet high) represen t scen es from the life

o f Buddha, and other Buddhist legends . They date probably fromthe first century A .D .

EAS T GA TE OF THE GREA T TOFE , SANCHI. _ 1 33

EAST GATE OF THE GREAT TOPE, SANCHI , NEAR BHILSA, BHOPAL .

1 34 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

an d overcoming avarice,both food and drink— a gift

heaven ly,destructive of sorrow

,productive of bliss— a

heaven ly life does she attain,en tering upon the path that

is free from corruption and impurity ; aiming at good ,happy does she become

,an d free from sickn ess , and long

does she rejoice in a heav en ly body .

”

It is strikin g how little we hear of active oppositionto Buddha in the Buddhist literature . This of course

may proceed from con cealmen t ; but seein g theundoubted great prosperity of Bii ddhism

,serious

oppon en tswould have been m en tion ed,if on ly to Show

how they had been overthrown . But Buddhism arosein the eastern lan d where Brahman ism had n ot takensuch strong root as in the n orth-west . Numerous bodiesof ascetics and religious freethinkers had arisen ; and w e

must bear in mind the predomin an t religiousn ess of theHin dus

,which would lead them n aturally to revere a

seeker after religious truth,especially on e who ren oun ced

worldlypossession s , an d who did n ot in any way disturbthe gen eral peace and order . In fact the asceticismsan ction ed or en couraged by the Brahman literature andpractice had numerous poin ts of resemblan ce to that of

Buddha . Yet it could on ly be in a coun try where highBrahman preten sion s were already question ed

,or den ied

,

that Buddha could have so severely criticised their system .

Sacrifi ces,Vedic teaching

,caste

,were to him as n othing .

In a kin d of Socratic method,when question ed b y Brah

man s as to the right path,Buddha makes them ackn ow

ledge that the paths ann oun ced ih the Vedas have not

en abled any of the Brahman s to see Brahma face to face,

or to kn ow him,or where and when ce he is ; and he

declares that the boasted knowledge of the Brahman s isBrahmans foolishn ess :

“As when a string of b lin d m en

0 0 1111113 11 are clinging on e to the other,n either can the

foremost see,n or can

"

the middle on e see,n or can the

hin dmost see .

” This is followed by an e laborate seriesof images demon stratin g the Same thin g . The Brahman s

,

he says,are hin dered from kn owing the truth by five

obstacles,

- lustful des ire,malice

,Sloth an d idlen ess

,pride

and self-righteousn ess,and doubt . All these things are

Opposition.

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1 36 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

made a great sacrifice at which n o an imals were Slainan d n o trees were cut down ; Simply libation s of milk , oil ,The b est and hon ey were offered . But Buddha proclaims5310111109 that a better an d easier sacrifice than that

,is

to make gifts to pious monks,an d build dwelling-places

for him an d his Order . A higher offering was to acceptBuddha ’s doctrin e ; higher still to become a monk whilethe highest offerin g was to obtain deliveran ce

,an d the

kn owledge,

“I shall n ot again return to this world .

”

How far the rival ascetic bodies an d their leadersOpen ly disputed the progress of Buddha we cann ot tell .

Later we find some traces of in terchange of civilitiesbetween them

,an d also some attempts to deprive each

other of the aid of influen tial people . Buddha ’s greatestdistin ction from the various brotherhoods was his disparagemen t of self-m ortifi cation . He had discovered thatthis last was gloomy

,unworthy

,unreal . The life of

pleasure an d“

sen sual en joymen t was base and ign oble .

The perfect life was the middle way,the eight-fold path .

Thus he exemplified with remarkable force the stren gthwhich lies in a middle course ; it certainly powerfullyhelped to make hi s the religious commun ity with thelargest following in the world .

The gen eral method of Buddha’s teaching was oraland conversation al . Such a thing as writing a book was

Method n ot then dreamt of,although book- learn in g

Of 19310111118” was highly developed . But learn ing /

b y heartseemed then the on ly possible or stable form of it ; an dn o doubt it was on c e

‘

thought a great inn ovation,an d

probably an un reason able thing,for any one to attempt

to Write out a book in full,when it was so easy and so

common to commit the con ten ts to memory . We,with

our comparatively feeble recollection s of the con ten ts ofany given book, do n ot realise a state of society whenpeople who were learn ed kn ew their few books by heartmore perfectly than most of us kn ow anything . B ut

person al teaching was then as influen tial as it ever hasbeen

,perhaps more so . The accoun ts given of Buddha ’s

in terv iews with disciples , even if n ot precisely accurate ,must represen t a

-kin d of in terview which was the com

LONG-DRA WN DIS SER TA TIONS . . 1 37

mon type of such teaching,and which at that very early

age was accepted as the type of his teaching . Un likethe Vedic books

,which are i n the pure high San skrit

,the

books of Buddhism ai e in the popular dialect ; and in

the sayings attributed to Buddha there is n o trace of

San skrit being used. Indeed,he is reported to have

given direction s that every_

b eliever should learn thewords of Buddha in his own tongue .

Everything in the Buddhist n arratives be ars the stampof an age which had become accustomed to solemn

,long

drawn dissertation s, and in which people of Long-drawn

leisure,or who had aban don ed the world

,gave disserta11°115~

themselves up to con tinual Speculation on the causesof various phen omen a or of troubles an d difficulties .There i s n o ti ac e of a life like our huri ied modern on e

,

in which on ly the smallest possib le time is given to anyon e thing . \Vith these old Hindus there was alwaysplen ty of time if a discussion was on foot

,an d it must

be con ducted in an orderly,sober fashion

,with due

ceremony and ful l elaboration . The great heat causeda ten den cy to indolen t gravity and long- drawn - out expression . Compression and selection were scarcely at

tempted . The Upan ishads,even if n ot composed before

the Buddhist books,were in existen ce about the same

time,an d testify to the widespread spirit of abstraction

an d philosophising . So that the form of Buddhist teachingwas due to the Spirit of the more educated among the

Hindus,as it had been developed by the Vedic an d post

Vedic literature . Although there i s con siderable vari etyin the matter and often much beauty i n the illustration sused in the discourses attributed to Buddha

,the following

gives an idea of a method frequen tly followed by him .

He is expressing the thought that all the sen ses an d

the outer things which they perceive are eaten away bythe sorrows an d the fleeting n ature of mortal affairs . Hethus addresses the thousan d disciples or monks who werewith him “Then said the Blessed On e to the disciples :‘Everything

,0 disciples

,is in flames . An d what Every

thing,0 disciples

,is in flames ? The eye

,0 disciples

,is

in flames ; the visible is in flames : the knowledge of the

I38 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

visible is in flames ; the con tact with the visible is inflames

,the feeling which arises from con tact with the

visible,be it pleasure

,be it pain

,b e it n either pleasure

n or pain,this also i s in flames . By what fire is it

kindled ? By the fire of desire,by the fire of hate

,by

the fire of fascin ation,it is kin dled ; by birth, old age ,

death,pain

,lamen tation

,sorrow

,grief

,despair

,it i s

kindled : thus I say . The ear is in flames,

’and So on

through a similar repetition of every detail ; and the

same with the sen ses of s mell,taste

,touch

,and with the

min d,forming a long discourse

,very mon oton ous to us

,

but probably delighting the hearers ."

It then goes on,

Con sidering thi s,0 disciples

,a wiSe hearer

,walking in

the n oble path,becomes weary of the eye , weary of

visible things,

”an d So on through the whole detail on ce

more . Then,

“becoming weary of all that,he becomes

free from desire ; free from desire he becomes delivered ;in the delivered arises the kn owledge

,I am delivered re

birth is at an end,perfected is holin ess

,duty don e there

is n o more return ing to this world ; he kn ows this .”

When this di scourse had b een delivered,the minds of

these thousan d disciples became free from attachmen t tothe world . (0 .

The mode of converting a n oble youth who was alreadymen tally prepared i s thus represen ted (Mahavagga I . 7

,

A nob leS .E ) .

“At that time there was in Ben ares a

youth’

s n oble y ,outh Yasa by n ame

,the son of a trea

°°nver3 1°m surer,and delicately nur tured . He had three

palaces,on e for win ter

,on e for summer

,and on e for the

rai ny season . In the palace for the rainy season he livedduring the four mon ths of that season

,surroun ded with

female musician s among whom n o maii was,and he did

n ot descen d from that palace all that time . Now one

day Yasa,the n oble youth

,who was en dowed with an d

possessed of the fiv e pleasures of sen se,whi le he was

attended by those female musi ci an s,fell asleep Soon er

than usual : an d after him his atten dan ts also fell asleep .

Now an o il lamp was burn ing through the whole n ight .“An d Yasa

,the n oble youth

,awoke soon er than usual ;

and he saw his atten dan ts Sleeping ; on e had her lute

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40 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

been hidden,or Should poin t out the way to on e who had

lost his way,or Shou ld b ring a lamp in to the dai kn ess

,

thus has the Blessed On e preached the doctrin e 11101113 11137

ways . I take my refuge i n the Blessed On e,and in the

Truth,an d in the Order of the monks ; may the Blessed

On e receive m e from this day forth while my life lasts,

as a disciple who has taken his refuge in him .

” Theseare typical stories ; whether it is that there was n ot muchn ecessi ty for adaptation to the in dividual cases

,or that

such in dividual touches have been lost by the n arration,

we find little but gen eral teachin g , There is on e simplecon sisten t teaching

,on e refuge for all who would attain

full kn owledge,—

,to join the Order of monks .

Something like the Socratic method is n ot infrequen tlym ade use of when an argumen t is held with a learn edSocratic person . Thus

,111 argt flfl g W l th Brahman s

,

111 91110 01 Buddha says : “IS Brahma in possession of

wives and wealth,or i s he n o t ? “He is n ot .

” Is hismin d full of anger

,or fl ee fromanger ? ” “Free from

anger .

” “Is his min d full of malice,or free from malice ? ”

Free from malice .

” “Is his min d depraved,or pure ? ”

“It is pure .

” “Has he self-mastery,or has he not ?

”

He has .” Now,what think you

,are Brahman s

versed in the Vedas in'

the possession of wives an d

wealth,or are they n ot ?

” They are . And so on

through all the question s ; leading to the triumphan treply : “Can there then b e agreemen t and liken ess b etween the B 1 ahman s with their wives and property

,and

B rahma who has n on e of these thingsIt is n oteworthy how frequen tly parables and S imiles

are made use of in the higher Buddhist teaching . Hereis an in stan ce .

Just as when a hen has eight or ten or twelve eggs,

and the hen has properly brooded over them,properly

sat upon them,properly sat herself roun d them

,

however much su ch a wish may a rise in herheart as this,

“Oh,would that my little chicken s should

break open the egg- Shell with the poin ts of their claws,

or W i th their beaks,and come forth in to the light in

safety"” yet all the while those little chicken s are sure

Parab les.

PARABLE S . 14 1

to break the egg- shell with the poin ts of their claws,or

with their beaks,an d to come forth in to the light in

safety . Just even so,a brother thus en dowed with

fifteenfold determin ation is sure to come forth in to thelight

,sure to reach up to the higher wisdom ,

sure toattain to the supreme secur ity .

” The lesson i s,that the

result is quite certai n,however mu ch doubt the hen or

the believer may have about it . (S .E . xi .)In on e place Buddha says :

“I Shall Show you a parable ;by a parable many a W i se m an perceives the mean ingof what i s being said .

” His own preaching is comparedto the physician ’

S work,drawing poison ed arrows from

wounds,an d overcomin g the ven om by remedies . Like

the lotus flower,raisin g its head in the lake

,unaffected

by the water,so the Buddhas are un affected by the

world ’s impurity . On e of the most elaborate parablesis the following

,part of whi ch we quote .

“As when,

O di sciples,in the forest

,on a moun tain Slope

,there lies

a great tract of lowlan d an d water,where a great herd

of deer lives,an d there comes a m an who desires hurt

,

distress,and danger for the deer ; who covers over and

shuts up the path which is safe, good , an d pleasan t totake

,and open s up a fresh path , a swampy path, a marshy

track : then ceforward the great herd of deer in curs hurtand danger

,and dimin ishes . B ut n ow

,0 disciples

,if a

m an comes,who desires prosperity,

welfare an d safetyfor this gi eat herd of deer : who clears an d open s up thepath which is safe

,good

,and pleasan t to take

,an d does

away with the false path,an d ab oli shes the swain py path,

the marshy track,then ceforth will the great herd of deer

thrive,grow

,and in crease . I have Spoken to you ,

Odisciples

,i n a p

,arable to make kn own my mean in g . But

the mean ing is thi s . The great lowlan d and the water,

0 di sciples,are pleasures . The great herds of deer are

living m en . The man who devises hurt,distress

,and

ruin,is Mara

,the evil on e . The false path is the eight

fold false path,false faith

,false resolve

,false Speech

,false

action,false living

,false effort

,false thought

,false self

con c eritration . The swampy way is pleasure and desire .

The swampy track is ign oran ce. The man who devises

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142 LIFE OF B UDDHA .

phished ; he however still electe d to live thr ee mon ths .A nd the n arrative goes on :

“ Thus the Blessed On e

deliberately and con sciously rejecte d the rest of hisallotted sum of life

,an d on his rejecting it there arose

a m ighty earthquake,awful an d terrible

,an d the thun

ders of heaven burst forth,and when the Blessed On e

beheld this,he broke out in to this hymn of exultation :

His sum of life the sage ren oun ced,

The course of life imm easurable or small

W ith inward j oy and calm,he broke

,

Like coat of mail, his life’

s own cause .

’

He then gave a summary of hi s most essen tial teachingsto the assembled disciples

,and con cluded thus :

My age is n ow full ripe , my life draw s to its close :I leav e you ,

I depart, relying on myself alon e

B e earn est then , 0 brethren"holy,full of thought"

B e steadfast in resolv e"Keep watch o’er your own hearts"

Who wearies n ot,b ut holds fast to this truth and law

Shall cross this s ea of life,shall make an end of grief.

After still a few days ’ journ eying,Buddha was seiz ed

With dysen tery atten ded with sharp pain,whi ch he bore

without complain t . At last he arrived at

Kusin ara where he died,even in his last hours

converting n ew disciples . His last words were,

“Beholdn ow

,brethren

,I exhort you

,saying

,Decay is inheren t

in all compon en t things . Work out your salvation withdiligen ce .

” His death was followed by earthquakes an d

thun ders,an d Brahma

,the Supreme Deity or First Cause

,

is represen ted as uttering some of the most characteristicBuddhist doctrin es

,while his ven erable disciple Anuruddha

spoke thus

His death.

When he who from all crav ing want was free,

Who to Nirvana’s tran quil state had reached,

When the great sage fin ished his span of life

No gasping struggle v exed that steadfast heart.

All—resolute , and w ith un shaken mind,

He calmly triumphed o’

er the pain of death.

E’en as a bright flam e dies away, so was

His last deliv eran ce from the b onds of life"’

HIS FUNE RAL. 145

His fun eral was celebrated by the n obles of Kusin arawith the hon ours due to a king of kings

,wrappin g hi s

body in five hun dred a ltern ate layers of cotton wool an dn ew cloth

,en closing it in tw o iron vessels

,an d fin ally

crematin g it on a fun eral pile made of perfumes . Fin ally,

the legen d says that n either soot n or ash was left,b ut

on ly the bon es . Then the relics were divided in to eightportion s

,over each of which a moun d was erected by the

respective groups who had claimed and obtain ed them .

THE ROYAL MONASTERY AT MANDALAY.

CHAPTER VI.

(1503 hummer 1180 111 11125 anti Harli n hunks.

R eaction from Brahmanism—Suffering and ignorance—The Eternal Immut

ab le—Van ity of earthly things—The causal nexus —Human responsi

b ility- Pun ishment of ev il —Being and causality The soul—Nirvana

Moral pr_ecepts Negative morality—Benev ol ence—Benefi cence—Self-d is

ciplin e—Temptation —Mara -The struggle and v ictory of the soul

States of ab straction—The four grades of attainment—The person of

Buddha—The Buddhist Scriptures—The Dhammapada.

T is on e of the strangest phen omen a,that the system

holding itself forth so promin en tly as the bringer ofhappin ess an d extingui sher of suffering Should be fitlyReaction called a philosophy of pessi

’

mi sm,of n egation

,

from of agn osticism . Yet it was a n atural reactionBrahmamsm'

from the -Brahman assumption of kn owingeverything

,and that ev erything would be right " if its

man agemen t were committed to Brahman s . In on ly on e

direction did the Buddhists claim to attain kn owledge,

that was t he path by which to attain deliveran ce fromsuffering, and ultimate Nirvan a . The kern el of this doc

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148 THE B UDDHJ S T D OCTELNE S .

you an d been shed by you,while ye strayed and wandered

on this long pilgrimage,an d sorrowed and wept

,because

that was your portion that ye abhorred , an d that whichye loved was n ot your portion ? A mother ’s death

,a

father ’s death,a brother ’s death

,a Sister ’s death

,a son ’s

death,a daughter ’s death

,the loss of relation s

,the loss

of property,all this have ye experien ced through long

ages,and while ye experien ced this through long ages

more tears have flowed from you and have been shedc

b y

you ,while ye strayed and wan dered on this lon g pil

grimage,an d sorrowed and wept

,because that was your

portion which ye abhorred an d that which ye loved wasn ot your portion

,than all the water which is in the four

great ocean s .” (O .) An d so on through the whole rangeof mortal affairs .The Dhammapada

,that n otable collection of Buddhist

apophthegms, proverbs , an d similes , which existed beforethe secon d coun cil (877 contain s some of the mostpithy sayings of melan choly .

“Man gathers flowers ; hisheart is set on pleasure . Death comes upon him

,like

the floods of water on a village,and sweeps him away .

”

“How c an ye be gay ? How c an ye in dulge desire ?Evermore the flames burn . Darkn ess surroun ds you :will ye n ot seek the light ? ” Look upon the world as

a bubble ; look upon it as a mirage .

” “T here is n o

satisfying lusts,even by a shower of gold pieces .” “Let

n o man love anything ; loss of the beloved is evil . Thosewho love , n othing

,an d hate n othin g

,have no fetters .

”

“From love come s grief ; from love comes fear .

” Yet inassociation with these sad views throughout we have thejoyful stan dard raised aloft . He who has learn t thesacred truths of Buddhism has overcome these evils anden tered in to joy.

“The virtuous man is happy in thisworld

,and he i s happy in the n ext

,he i s happy in

both . He is happy When he thinks of the good he hasdon e he is still more happy when going on the goodpath .

“Earn est among the thoughtless,awake among

the Sleepers,the wi se m an advan ces like a i acer

,leavin g

behin d the track .

” “Let n o man think lightly of good,

saying in his heart,it will not come n igh un to me . Even

P UNIS fi M ENT OF E VIL. 49

by the falling of water-drops a waterpot is filled ; thew ise m an becomes full of good

,even if he gather it little

by little Let u s live happily,free from greed among

the greedy .

“His good works receive him who has

don e ~

good,‘

an d has gon e from this world to the other ;as kin smen receive a frien d on his return .

We cann ot fully expoun d what is kn own as the causaln exus in Buddhism

,b ut this in itself has n ever been

taught to the masses,an d w as on ly for the more The causal

intellectual ; while to western minds it is con n exusfused and in con clusive an d more or less self- con tradictory .

We fin d that Buddhism,like most other human systems

,

has failed to express,though it has verged n ear to the

core of,philosophical question s . What is certain is

,that

the early Buddhists regarded the con sciousn ess as thesole con tinuing thing

,while at death the body

,sen sation s

an d perception s vanish ; an d this con sciousn ess was con

n ec ted with a sort of spirit- stuff or elemen t,un demon

Strahle,ev e1 lasting, all- illumin ating ; it passes over at

death to become associated with the germ of a n ew

material being to be born again . The succession of re

births must con tinue un til the being attain s “deliveran ce,

”

as made known by Buddhism .

A lthough expressed in a widely differen t form fromour own

,we see throughout Buddhism an assertion of

human respon sibilitywhich ten ds in the highest Human re

deg1 ee to morality . However much we may Sponsib ilit‘

]

be con dition ed by our previous state as by our environmen t

,we are always affected by our own action s . As

explicitly as in the Christian Bible,we fin d stated that

“n ot in

“

the heaven s,n ot in the midst of the sea

,n ot

if thou hidest thyself away in the clefts of the moun tain s,

wilt thou fin d a place on earth where thou can st escapethe fru it of thy evil action s (Dhammapada Punishmentv . Even when the way of deliveran ce Of evn

has been attain ed,a man will still suffer pun ishmen t for

ev il- doing n ot yet expiated . Thus,a robber and mur

derer who became a Buddhist was violen tly attackedwhen he wen t to collect alms ; an d Buddha tells himhe w as n ow receiving the pen alty for evil deeds for which

1 50 THE B UDDHIS T D OCTRINE S .

otherw ise he would have had to suffer thousan ds of yearsin hell . A judgmen t scen e is depicted

,in which the

wicked m an 1s brought up from hell before King Yama,who in quires of him

b

whether he did n ot see on earththe five vision s of human weakn ess an d suffering

,—the

child,the old man

,the Sick m an

,the crimin al un der

pun ishmen t,an d the dead m an . He is further asked

whether he did n o t con sider that he was n ot exemptfrom o ld age an d death

,an d ought to do good in thought

,

word,and deed . Confessing that he had n eglected it

,

he is told that he alon e 1s respon sible,and must gather

the fruit . The warders of hell take him away an d subjecthim to the severest physical torm en ts

,ending in death

on ly when his guilt is fully expiated .

On e aspect of the Buddhist doctrin e of causality 1s wellillustrated by the following .

“Whoever perceives inBeing and truth an d wisdom how things origin ate i n thecausality. world

,in his eyes there is n o

‘

b

it is n o t ’1

this world. WlioeVer perceives in t1 uth and v ’ isuom now

things pass away in this world,in his eyes the1 e is n o

‘ it is ’ in this world . Sorrow alon e arises whereanything arises ; sorrow passes away where anythingpasses away .

‘Everything is ’ ; this is the on e extreme :‘ everythin g is n ot

,

’ this is the other extreme . ThePerfect On e

,remain ing far from both these extremes

,

proclaims the truth 1n the middle .

‘From ign oran cecome con formation s (sankharas), forms of being determin ing their own succession s an d successive forms .There is n o

'

thought of an in dependen t matter apart froman existen ce or being . Every perception

,every con dition

,

bodi ly or spiritual , is on e of these sankharas,and all are

tran sitory,all un der the con trol of causality. Beyon d

this Buddhism does n ot attempt to go it does n o t kn owthe Etern al

,or how the world was created

,or whether

it is everlasting or fin ite .

Buddhism even does n ot allow that there is a souldistin ct from the body . Practically it on ly recogn ises

the combin ed bein g that 1s seen or is con sciousof itself

,an d that suffers ; an d it has n o ex

plan at1on beyon d. Reduced to its lowest term,Buddhism

The soul.

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52 THE B UDDHZS T D OCTR JNE S .

declaration that they had a message on ly for those whorecogn ised their evil state and desired d eliveran ce n o

doubt acted as a stimulus to the outer masses so far asthey were in an intellectual state capable of aspiring aftersomething better . But Buddhism did n ot lay itself outto tell all people that they ought to do or to be so -and- so

every day,always

,everywhere . On ly when they sought

discipleship,lay or men dican t

,did Buddhism furn ish

them with a code of observan ce,which in cluded moral

duties,un dertaken for the purpose of elevating their

own state T hus “He who Speaks or acts with impurethoughts

,him sorrow follows

,as the wheel follows the

foot of the draught horse . He who speaks or acts withpure thought

,him joy follows

,like his Shadow

,which

does n ot leave him .

The third to the sixth portion s of the n oble eightfoldpath

’

more specially con cern morals . The first and second,

correct views, free from superstition or delusion ,an d right

aims or correct thoughts,worthy of an in telligen t man

,

are specially in tellectual . The third,right speech

,per

fectly truthful, as well as kin dly ; the fourth , right con

duct,pure

,hon est

,peaceable ; the fifth

,a right mode of

gain ing a livelihood,doing harm to n o living thing ; an d

the Sixth,right effort

,self- con trol

,self- train ing

,embrace

the sum of Buddhist m orals . The seven th an d eighth,

m in dfuln ess and con templation,are again purely inward .

The whole”

moral code may thus be expressed as uprightn ess in word

,deed

,an d thought ; b ut the great import

an ce of wisdom , as the crown of uprightn ess is fullyexpressed .

A great portion of the Buddhist morality,however

,

was n egative,made up of prohibition s . Five special

Negative hin dran ces,veils

,or en tanglemen ts are specia

mOralitY fied,which must be mastered

,n amely

,lustful

desire,malice

,Sloth

,self-righteousn ess or pride

,and doubt.

Five main comm ands are often repeated . The Buddhistmust (1 ) kill n o living thing , (2) n o t steal , (8) live chastely ,(4) speak n o unt ruth

, (5) n ot drink in tox icating drinks .B ut in the rules for the mon ks

,we fin d such positive

addition s as the following The cudgel and the sword

BENE VOLENCE .,

1 53

he lays aside ; an d full of modesty an d pity,he is com

passi on ate an d kin d to all creatures that have life . Whathe hears here

,he repeats n ot elsewhere to raise a quarrel .

He lives as a bin der- together of those who aredivided

,an encourage1 of those who are frien ds

,a peace

maker,a lover of peace .

"

Whatever word 1s

human e,pleasan t to the ear

,lovely

,reaching to the heart,

urban e, pleasmg to the people , such are the words he

speaks . Putting away foolish talk,he abstain s

from vain conversation . In season he speaks ; he speaksthat whi ch 1s ; he speaks fact that which 1 e

doun ds to profit, is well defin ed , an d is full of wisdom .

He refrain s from inju1 ing any herb or any creature . Hetakes b ut on e meal a day . He abstain s from dan cing ,singing

,music an d theatrical Shows (S . E . xi .

It cann ot be said that the Christian virtue of love istaught by Buddhi sm . There 1S sometimes some approachto it

,b ut it is n ot clear . The virtue en join ed

by Buddhism is rather the extin ction of hatingthan positive love . Thus

,

“He who holds back r1s1nganger like a rolling chariot

,him I call a real driver .

Le t a man overcome anger by not becomingangry ; let a man overcome evil by good ; let him overcome the g1 eedy by liberality , the liar by truth .

”En

mity n ever comes to an en d thi ough enmity here below ,

i t comes to an en d by n on - enmity ; this has been therule from all etern ity . A n otable story is foun d in theMahavagga, which illustrates this last doctrin e . But

the ben evolen ce which an early Buddhist felt was far

removed from Christian b en evolen ce . His body,which

might be hurt by others , was n o t really himself ; so hefelt n o bitter resen tmen t at anything don e to it . “Thosewho cause me pain an d those who cause me joy, to allI am alike

,an d affection an d hatred I kn ow n ot . In joy

or sorrow I remain unmoved ; in hon our an d dishon ourthroughout I am alike .

” This ben evolen ce was n ot aspon tan eous sympathy rising in the good man ’s heart

,

b ut a result of meditation and in ten tion al men tal exercise ;and this ben evolence

,radiating from him

,is said to exert

a kin d of magical irifluen ce,bringing about harmon ious

Benevolence.

1 54 THE B UDDHIS T D OCTEHVE S .

relation s between Buddhists and all people and evenan imals .But what of b en eficen ce

,so highly esteemed in Chris

tian ity ? To outward appearan ce,it was just as highly

Benefi cenceesteemed in early Buddhism ; b ut the forms ofits exercise were differen t . From all that we

can gather,poor people

,in the sen se of those wan ting

daily food or mean s to get it,were by n o mean s abun dan t

at that time in In dia ; an d the higher modes of Christianb en efi cen c e were n ot yet dreamt of. Join ing the Buddhi storder itself gave rise to the very practical step of renun ciation ; b ut in the case of those who were already marriedan d had families it released the adheren ts from theirfamily reSpon sib ilities and care s . This renun ciation can

scarcely be called b en efi cen c e,for it was n ot don e in

order that o ther person s might be ben efited . Practicallythe chief b en efi cen ce exercised by Buddhists was by the

adherents,who were expected to Show liberality to

all in dividual monks an d to the Order gen erally . Thisb en efic en c e was for the sake of their religious profess1on ,

however,an d can hardly be called pure b en efic en c e . An d

all through early Buddhism the special virtue of b en eficen ce is overshadowed by the broader an d deeper n ecess ity for ren oun cing every worldly possession ; even layadheren ts were n ot to coun t things their own

,by which

they might con fer on the Order n eeded ben efits . In someof the n arratives a little later than the earlies t

,the givin g

away of wife an d children is represented as of no momen tcompared with winn ing the Buddhahood . We see clearlythat it was n ot by mean s of b en eficen ce that the characteradvocated by Buddhi sm was to be acquired .

That disciplin e was essen tially in tern al . “Rouse thyselfby thyself

,examin e thyself by thyself

,curb thy

Self self as the merchan t curbs a good horse .

1311“ Cut off the five sen ses,leave the five

,rise above

the five . In the body restrain t is good,good is

restrain t in speech,in thought restrain t is good

,good

is restrain t in all things (S .E . x .

,Dhammapada) . Every

thing 1s to be don e with a self- con scious efl’

ort an d watchfuln ess . Self- examin ation is to b e practised after every

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1 56 THE B UDDHZS T DOCTRINE S .

He who has comprehen ded sorrow,when ce it Springs

,

how can he ben d himself to desire ? He who kn ows thatear thly existen ce is a fetter in this world

,let him practise

that which sets him free therefrom .

” Then Mara,the

Evil on e,said

,

“The Exalted On e kn ows me,the Perfect

On e kn ows me,

an d d iscon certed an d dishearten ed herose an d wen t away . Other n arratives represen t Maraas con stan tly watching the avenues of the sen ses that hemay gain access to the min d ; an d this con tinual siegeis on ly to be met by con tinual watchfuln ess, which willat last make Mara give up the hopeless task .

Dr . Oldenberg graphically describes the struggle b etween the in dividual soul and the sorrow-producin g chain

The struggleof sufferin g

,and the tempter Mara

,as pictured

and v ictory by the early Buddhists .

“The struggle i s

Of the souln either slight n or brief. From that momen t

forward,when first the conviction dawn s upon a soul

,that

this battle must be fought,that there i s a deliveran ce

whi ch can be ga in ed— from that first beginn in g of thestruggle up to the fin al vi ctory

,coun tless ages of the world

pass away . Earth worlds and heaven ly worlds,an d world s

of hell s also,pass away as they have arisen and passed

away from all etern i ty . Gods an d m en,all an imated

bein gs,come and go

,die an d are born again

,and amid

this en dless tide of all things , the beings who are seekin gdeliveran ce , n ow advan cing and vi ctorious

,and an on

driven back,press on to thei1 goal . The path reaches

beyon d the range of the eye,b ut it has an end. After

coun tless wan derings through worlds and ages the goalat last appears before the wan derer ’s gaze . An d in his

sen se of victory there is mingled a feeling of pride forthe victory w on by his own power . The Buddhist hasn o god to than k

,as he had previously n o god to invoke

durin g his struggle . The gods bow before him,n ot he

before the gods .

”

The place of prayer in other religion s is in Buddhismtaken by abstraction

,m editation

,withdrawal as far as

States of possible from the world of sen se . How far thisab straCtion ' may proceed by an artifi cial system we maysee later . Some portion s of the Buddhist scriptures

THE PER S OZV OF B UDDHA . 157

describe methods of producing self- con cen tration ; an d

frequen tly“

they approach pathological or morbid con

dition s . It is n o w on der that hallucin ation s of the sen sesShould arise in m en who have torn themselves from everyhome tie

,an d devoted themselves to homelessn ess an d

abstraction . B ut heaven ly vision s,heaven ly soun ds

,

forms of supern atural beings are on ly rarely seen ratherthe con dition common ly attain ed w as that kn own asclairvoyan t

,in which the spir it w as believed to b e

pecu liarly refin ed,pure

,plian t

,and firm . Then the

monks imagin ed they saw the past cleai ly, even theirown past existen ces

,saw in to the thoughts of others

,

acquired miraculous powers,became invisible an d ag

appeared on earth . Many of these may b e paralleled byvarious accoun ts in the Bible ; b ut there are n o parallelresults flowin g from them .

Among the monks n o gradation was at first recognisedexcept the higher order of those who had attain ed deliveran ce ; b ut later four grades were ackn ow The foul.

l edged : (l ) the lowest, those who had attain ed grades of

the path,an d were n ot liable to re -bi1 th 1n the

attainment

lower worlds (hells , world of animals,spir it worlds)

"(2)

those who return on ce on ly to this world— these havedestroyed desire

,hatred

,an d frivolity (8) the n on - return

ing,who on ly en ter the higher worlds of the gods

,an d

these attain Nirvan a (4 ) the Sain ts (Arhats) . But thesegrades did n ot give those who had attain ed them anyspecial plac e in the Order .

A special grade w as occupied by those who gain edparticipation in the Buddhahood by their own inheren tforce

,having won the kn owledge bringin g deliveran ce

by their own exertion s . They were believed to havelived chi efly in the ages previous to Buddha himself ; b utthey were n ot equal to the un iv e i sal Buddhas ” ofwhomGautama was on e .

The position claimed by an d assign ed to Buddha ispecul iar in that he had n o special commission from asupreme Being

,an d did n ot put himself for The p erson

ward as the represen tative of the invisible Of Buddh a

powers. He was simply,in the presen t order of things ,

1 58 THE B UDDH J S T B OCTI [N .E S

the first who had obtain ed un iversal Buddhahood . Htaught to others the truths that he had himself discovered.

He was their helper,b ut it was by their own effort an d

meditation that 1t could really. be received by them .

An d yet the claims attributed to Buddha are n othin gless than omn iscien ce and perfection . He says : “ I haveovercome all foes ; I am all-wise ; I am free from stain sin every way I have left ev erytliing an d have obtain edeman cipation by the destruction of desire . Having myself gain ed kn owledge

,whom should I call my master ?

I hav e no teacher ; n o on e is equal to me 5 in the worldof men an d of gods n o being is like me . I am the HolyOn e in this world

,I am the highes t teacher

,I alon e

am the perfect Buddha,I have gain ed cooln ess by the

extin ction of all passion,an d have obtain ed Nirvan a .

”

(Mahav agga, S .E . xiii .)“He appears in the world for

salvation to many people,for j oy to many people

,out of

compassion for the world for the blessing,the salvation

,

the joy of gods and men . But Buddha is by n o mean srepresen ted as the sole person who has attain ed Buddahood . Many Buddhas had been before him and wouldcome after him ; but they were supposed all to be b ornin Eastern In dia

,an d to be all of the Brahman or soldier

(Kshatriya) castes ; an d their teaching prevailed for

longer or shorter periods,after which faith van ished

for a time in the earth . Thus we see that Buddha wasthe starter of the n ew religious life

,an d essen tial to it ;

but by n o mean s a god,or a heaven - sen t messenger.

Those which are pre- emin en tly worthy of this design ation

,as being the oldest an d purest

,are the Pali b ooks

preserv ed by the Ceylon ese Buddhists . They are arranged in three collection s or “Baskets ” (pitakas) . Thefirst

,or Vin aya-pitaka

,in cludes books con tainin g regula

tion s for the extern al life of the order of monks . Thesecon d

,or Sutta-pitaka

,con tain s a number of m iscel

lan eous works, each composed of su ttas or short pithysen ten ces

,some relatin g sayings of Buddha

,others legen ds

and stories of the preceding Buddhas. The third con tain s

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160 THE B UDDHJ S T DOCTRINE S .

Let the wise man guard his thoughts,for they are very

difficult to perceive,very artful

,an d they rush wherever

they list .” “The fool who kn ow s his foolishn ess is wise,

at least so far . But a fool who thinks himself wise,he

is called a fool indeed .

” On e ’s own self conquered isbetter than all other people . Here is a conden sed cen sureof asceticism :

“No t n akedn ess,n ot platted hair

,n o t dirt

,

n ot fasting,or lying on the earth

,n o t rubbing with dust

,

n ot sitting motionl ess,c an purify a mortal who has n ot

overcome desires .”

The following is a varied selection of these gems . “Baddeeds

,an d deeds hurtful to ourselves

,are easy to d0 °

what is ben eficial an d good,that is very difficult to do .

“This world is dark,few on ly can see here ; a few on ly

go to heaven,like birds escaped from the n et .

“Healthis the greatest of gifts

,con ten tedn ess the best riches ;

tru st is the best of relation ships,Nirvan a the highest

happin ess .

“If any thing is to be don e , let a man do

i t,let him attack it vigorously . A careless pilgrim on ly

scatters the dust of his passion s more widely .

” Similesof great aptn ess or beauty abound. As the bee collectsn ectar an d departs without injuring the flower

,or its

colour or scen t,so let a sage dwell in his village .

” “Likea beautiful flower

,full of colour

,b ut without scen t

,are

the fin e but fruitless words of him who does n ot actaccordingly .

“There is n o fir e like passion,there is n o

shark like hatred,there is n o sn are like folly

,there is

n o torren t like greed .

” “The fault of others is easilyperceived

,b ut that of on eself is difficult to perceive ; a

m an winn ows his n eighbour ’s fau lts like chaff,but hi s

own fault he hides,as a cheat hides the bad die from

the gambler .

” “If a fool be associated with a wise man

ev en all hi s life,he will perceive the truth as little as a

spoon perceive s the taste of soup .

’

It 1s n atural to fin d in these pithy sayings the pervadingtruth of the universality of suffering an d the van ity of

life .

“Before long a,las"thi s body will lie on the earth

,

despised,w ithout

b

un derstan ding,like a useless log .

”

As a cowherd with his staff drives hi s cows in to thestable

,so do Age and Death drive the life of men .

”Old

THE 1 6 1

age is thus depicted : “Lach at this d ressed-up lump,covered with woun ds

,join ed together, sickly , fu ll of many

thoughts,which has n o strength

,n o hold . This body is

wasted,full of sickn ess an d frail ; this heap of corrup tion

breaks to pieces,life in deed ends in

'

death .

”YVe are

told to “ look upon this world as a bubble,as a mirage .

”

But watchfuln ess and the true kn owledge preserves am an in safety . On e of the later sen ten ces gives a fin epicture of a stoic .

“Him I call in deed a Brahman who,

though he has committed n o offen ce,en dures reproach

,

bon ds,an d stripes

,who has en duran ce for his force

,an d

strength for his army . In deed,the whole section on

the true Brahman is fin e : he is toleran t with the in

toleran t,mild with faultfin ders

,free from passion among

the passion ate , is thoughtful , guileless , free from doubts ,free attachmen t

,an d con ten t .

CASKE T CONTAINING BUDDHA’

S TOOTH , IN THE 1 111119111: DALADA

MALIGAWA, RANDY, CEYLON.

CHAPTER VII.

QEDB flSuDDbfst 11911111 .

The Buddhist order—The Mahavagga—Fortnightly meetings—Confessionand penance

—Strict regulations—Profession o f faith—Not a b ody cor

porate—No head after Buddha - Assemb lies or Councils—Limitations

on admission—Form of reception—The four resources—The four pro

hib itions—Quitting the order—Its advantages - No silver or gold

Seemly outward appearance—Companionship—Tutelage —Recitationsand d iscussions—Retirement and love of nature - Few ceremoniesR everence and Buddha—R egard for holy places - The confessional a The

KuHavagga—Ofi ences and penancesfl The Bavarana or invitation—The

nuns or sisters—The laity—Esoteric Buddhism- Karma.

attention must now be given to the greater of men dican ts or monks which perpetuated

Buddha’s influen ce and exten ded his teaching. Very162

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164 THE B UDDHJ S T DOCTRINE S .

monks of course arose . The following is the professionof faith which early b ecame prevalen t

To Buddha will I look in faith ; he , the Exalted , isthe holy

,supreme Buddha

,the kn owing

,the i n structed

,

Profession of the blessed, Who kIlOVVS the worlds , the SI].

faith preme On e,who yoketh men like an ox

,the

Teacher of gods an d men,the exalted Buddha .

“ To the doctrin e will I look in faith well preached isthe doctrin e by the Exalted On e . It has become apparen t ; it n eeds n o time ; it says

‘Co’

me and see ’

; it leadsto welfare it is realised by the wise in their own hearts .

To the Order will I look in faith in right behaviourlives the Order of disciples of the Exalted On e in proper

,

hon est,just behaviour lives the Order of the disciples of

the Exalted On e,the four

“

couples,the eight classes of

believ ers ; that is the Order of the disciples of the ExaltedOn e

,wor thy

_

to have m en lift their han ds before them in

reveren ce,the highest place in the world

,in which man

may do good .

“In the precepts of rectitude will I walk,which the

holy love,which are un infringed

,

’

unviolated,unmixed

,

un coloured,free

,praised by the wise an d n ot coun terfeit

,

which lead on to con cen tration .

”

Although we have spoken of the Buddhist Order,some

what as if it were a body corporate,it n ever became

Not a b ody‘

strictly so . No cen tral authority or represenCorpm

'ate tativ e coun cil was ever con stituted ; n o person

was deputed by the foun der of the religion to’

represen t

him after his death . An d in deed mankin d had n ot thenarrived at the con ception of a Pope

,or

_a gen eral authority

Ne heed after exercising sway through widely difi’

eren t andBuddha“ s eparate region s . The only device that then

occurred to the monks was to attribute every n ew regulation which they wished to enforce

,to Buddha himself.

He was the on e person to whom authority was con ceded ;and in so far as hi s authority was ackn owledged , hisAesemhhee er supposed behests were likely to be obeyed .

0 0 1111 0118. The on ly other way of imposing n ew regulation s was by mean s of assembli es or coun cils of monks ,b ut though sometimes spoken of as gen eral coun cils as

FORM OF RE CE P TION . 1 6 :v

of a Church,they were on ly assemblies of monks at a

particular cen tre at on e time,n ot called from all Buddhi st

cen tres,and n ot represen tative . Probably the first of

these,said to have b een held at R aj agaha immediately

after Buddha’S death,in cluded the most promin en t an d

revered of his followers ; b ut there was n o way of imposingits decision s on those who were n ot presen t

,except by a

purely in tangible influen ce . The same was the case withthe later coun cils . No doubt they were assembled becauseev il s had arisen

,or question s required decision . But the

more Buddhi sm Spread,the more in depen den t spirits

en tered its ranks,the more difficult was it to heal divi

sion s or to preven t divergen ces of doctrin e and practicefrom arising . An d this wen t on

,an tagon ised on ly by the

cohesion produced by the sacred books,the devotion and

reveren ce for Buddha,the greater or less con sciousn ess

of a common in terest to advan ce and a common battle tofight . Hen ce it w as that

,as its foun de1 p1 edicted, Bud

dhism was destin ed to die 1n India,an d to main tain itself

in other coun tries in widely differen t forms fi om thosein which it had origin ated .

At first n o limitation s were imposed as to admission tothe Order ; any applican t w as received . But it was soonn ecessary to lay down certain 1 ules of exclusion . Crimin als

,those afflicted with serious

deformities,soldiers and servan ts of kings

,

debtors an d Slaves,and son s whose paren ts refused their

con sen t,were thus excluded . No youth might en ter the

first stage till twelve years old,or might be fully received

as a monk till twen ty . Two stages were marked,the

prelimin ary reception or outgoing fi om lay life or fromanother sect of ascetics

,an d the complete en try (Upasam

pada) in to the Order . The lattei was conferred Term of

at a gen eral meeting (Samgha) cf monks in reception

any place , a resolution asking for it being proposed, andany on e who objected being required to declare hisobjection . The petition er was asked if he had certaindiseases

,if he was a freeman

,if he had n o debts

,if he

had a proper alms bowl an d robes,if his paren ts con

sen ted,if he was i n the royal service

,etc He had

166 THE B UDDHIS T DOCTRINE S .

further to offer some experien ced monk as his spon soror teacher. He was then proposed for formal reception ;The four an d if n o monk objected

,he was declared to

TGSOM CGS be received . He was n ext formally told whatwere the four resources of the Order

, (1) morsels of foodgiven in alms

, (2) a robe made of rags taken from a dustheap

, (8) dwelling at the foot of a tree, (4) the fi lthiest

liquid for medicin e . All other food,drink

,Shelter

,an d

c lothing were to be regarded as extra allowan ces . AfterThe four this , four great prohibition s were commun i

prohib itionS-cated : 1) the comman d to live a chas te life ,(2 ) n ot to take even a blade of grass that had not beengiven to him

, (8) n ot to take the life of even the minutestcreature

, (4) n ot to boast that he possessed any superhuman perfection . Thus the whole reception was con

fin ed'

to declaration s on the part of both the can didatean d the assembly . Nothing like prayer

,special in itiation

or confermen t of power was in cluded .

It followed that it was equally easy to leave the Order .This was a direct con sequen ce of Buddha ’s teaching

,

Quittmg the which was on ly open to those who volun ta1 ilyOrder received it . Perhaps n o Order ever held its

members so lightly ; and in this lay on e of the secretsof its strength . The monks were boun d to lead a verytemperate life, but their subsisten ce was sure so lon g asthe Order “had any repute ; the thoughts to which they

The were exhorted chimed in with their own n aturaladvantages prepossession s

,and an un doubted position of

respect an d influen ce was occupied by every monk . Thenagain

,while n ot coercing any on e to stay (a monk might

leave on Simply declaring that he wished to return torelatives

,or home

,or a worldly life) , the Order had a

con siderable hold on him by reason of the cen sure and

the exclu sion which it might pron oun ce . The breakingof any of the great prohibition s caused exclusion

,provided

any monk took n otice of it and brought the case beforean assembly . So the double mode— forcible exclusion ,

an d volun tary retiremen t— were in easy Operation,an d

thus the Orde1,retaining on ly volun tary and well behaved

members,was s .trong

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168 THE B UDDHIS T DOCTR INE S .

the Order each monk had to b e un der the tutelage of

two monks of ten years ’ standing whom hewas to accompany an d atten d upon

,and from

whom he was to receive in struction . Where manymonks resided together

,offices became somewhat sub

divided,but on ly in r elation to domestic matters ; thus

differen t in dividuals were charged with the distributionof fruit

,of rice

,the care of the sleeping and assembly

rooms,etc .

It is n oteworthy how little 1mportan ce the Buddhistmonks attached to labour apart from absolute n ecessities .Recitations

Like the strict Brahman s,to whom the recita

and tion of the Vedas was all- importan t,the monks

dl scussmns ' regarded the repetition of Buddha ’s sayings an ddiscourses an d the rules of the Order as essen tial . But

this was varied with d iscussion s on poin ts of difficultyor the fuller exposition of the leading doctrin es : “Hewho abides in the Order talks n ot of many topics an d

talks n ot of vulgar things . He expoun ds the word himself

,or stirs up an other to its exposition ,

or he esteemseven sacred Silen ce n ot lightly .

”

(O .) On the whole wehave a picture of an Order living in the world

,yet n ot

of the world,almost daily con templating the turmoil and

distraction s of a suffering,changeful life

,yet n ever takin g

part in its affairs ; a stan ding witn ess to self- seekin g,quarrelling people that something existed far better thantheir life

,that passion s could b e quelled

,that there was

Retirement a life which gave relief from sorrows an d proand love of duced a philOSOphic calm . Perhaps , in this lifenature ‘ too there was more pure love of n ature than

was always ackn owledged ; an d the‘

rul e as to sparinglife was certain ly in accord with this . Some of theirpoets have beautifully expressed this love of n ature .

The broad heart- cheering expan ses crown ed by kareriforests

,those lovely region s

,where elephan ts raise their

voices,the rocks make me glad . Where the rain rushes

,

those lovely abodes,the moun tain s where sages walk

,

where the peacock’s cry resoun ds,the rocks

,make me

glad. There is it good for me to be,the frien d of

abstraction,who is struggling for salvation . _ There is it

Tutelag‘

e.

RE GARD FOR H OLY PLA CE S . 169

good for me to be,the monk

,who pur sues the true good

,

who is struggling for salvation .

”

(O .)The fortn ightly meetings already referred to (p . 168)

were almost the on ly regular assemblies of Buddhists,

an d con fession an d ques tion in g of on e an other Few

was almost the on ly religious form . We must ceremomes

con stantly keep i n min d the burden some an d expen siven ature of the Brahman Observan ces

,an d likewi se the

authority which the Brahman s claimed over all kin ds ofcon cern s of other people . Thus the con trast to the latterw as very eviden t in Buddhism : little ceremony

,retired

life,modest demean our

,pure living

,n o profession of

supern atural power,n o assumption of authority . Herein

w as a great part of its strength. It is surely on e of themost remarkable phen omen a in the world that a religion

-if it c an be truly called a religion,— whi ch professes

n o kn owledge an d in culcates n o worship of a god, an d

which is n ot boun d in reveren ce to a super R ev ereh ee to

n atural Person,should have obtain ed sway over Bumm

on e - third of the population of the globe . Buddha,it is

true,is ever held in reveren ce

,b ut he is n ot believed

in as existin g ; he is in Nirvan a , b ut whether Nirvan ais a state of presen t existen ce or n ot is doubtful

,an d thus

there is n o prayer to Buddha,n o an swer to prayer by

Buddha ; yet his memory is fresh, his n ame is san ctified,

his teachin g is influen tial as ever .

The on ly thin g in early Buddhi sm approaching the

pilgrimages and acts of w orship in other religion s,is the

holding in reveren ce of the four n otable places R egard for

in Buddha ’s life : his birthplace,the spot where holy places

he attain ed kn owledge an d perfect in sight,the place

where he started the kingdom of righteousn ess,an d the

place of his death . Those who died while journ eying tothese places were promised that their re -birth should bein heaven . The care of Buddha’s relics

,the building of

monumen ts to con tain them,and the holding of festivals

in their hon our were en tir ely left to lay members .Perhaps the in stitution most n early parallel with the

Buddhist assemblies is the class-meeting among the

Methodists as in stituted by John Wesley . The “ leader

70 THE E UDDHIS T DOCTRINE S .

of the meeting was the monk of longes t S tan ding in the

The district,an d every member of the Order was

confeSSional to be presen t,even if ill

,un less he were able

to sen d b y an other monk his assuran ce of freedom fromthe faul ts which the sacred form (Pattimokkha

,the words

WORSHIPPERS BEFORE THE ENTRANCE TO THE SHRINE OF THE TOOTH , CEYLON .

of disburdenmen t) inquired in to . No woman,n o lay

member,n o n ovice

,might take part in or be presen t at

this solemn ity. Three times every question must be put ,an d Silen ce was an assertion of purity . In later timesit was held n ecessary that every monk shou ld

”

have

prev iously confessed his fault and don e the appropriate

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1 72 THE B UDDHJ S T O OCTETNES .

Thus utterly devoid of Show,of stately formality

,of

imposing accompanimen ts,was Buddhism ; priestless ,

templeless,agn ostic as to the Supreme Being

,its un

den iable power an d influen ce drew to it multitudes of

adheren ts ; an d they were n ot all soun d or docile fishthat came to the n et. Hen ce we early hear of dissen sion sin the Order , an d whole chapters in the sacred books aredevoted to their con sideration . There are procedures forsettling disputes

,for dealing with charges again st the

inn ocen t,the in san e

,etc . and when peaceable recon cilia

tion prov ed impossible,matters were to be decided by a

vote of the majority,un less the subject was too trivial

,or

a vote would lead to an Open schism;

The “nun s

,

” or “ sisters,

”of Buddhism were regarded

as con stituting a separate Order,with their own fort

The hung, or n ightly assemblies , yet in complete subordin aS isters' tion to the monks

,so that n on e of the higher

ceremon ies"

were complete without the cc -Operation of

monks . Every Sister had to bow reveren tly,rise

,and

raise ‘ her clasped hands before every monk,however

n ewly admitted . Both the con fession meetings an d the

preaching of the true Buddhist doctrin e had to be con

ducted for them by the monks ; and the nun s,after

havin g held their own annual meeting,had to sen d to

the correspon ding meeting of monks askin g them if theyhad any fault to reprehen d in them . They were forbidden to revil e or scold monks

,or to accuse them .

Ordin ation of the Sisters,pen an ces for transgression s

,

settlemen t of disputes,all had to be performed or ar

ranged by the monks . Every fortn ight the Sisterhoodhad to obtain audien ce of a monk whohad been appoin tedby his assembly to in struct and admon ish them ; b ut hewas strictly forbidden to en ter their abode

,or to journ ey

or have any in timate compan ion ship with them . Nosister might live alon e

,or in a forest ; they lived within

the walls of town s and villages,an d n ever. seem to have

been at all comparable in numbers or influen ce to them on ks . In deed

,it would have been again st the spirit

of the Buddhist system that they should be socould on ly exist by the keeping up of family life

,the

THE LAIT Y. 1 73

provision of food and dwelling-places,which could n ot

b e'

con tinued if women made a practice of living in nun

like separation .

The relation s between the Order an d the l aity wereun like those of

'

almost every other church .

“ Lay believersmust have been very numerous, to admit of

the support of such large numbers of monks,

and the exten sive dedication of parks an d buildings totheir use ; b ut the monks n ever thought it n ecessary toin stitute a formal method of admitting lay adheren ts

,n or

to keep a roll of them . Practically in each district thefollowers of Buddha were well kn own

,an d it was n ot

desirable to exclude any on e from the class of giverswithout some poten t reason . It was usual

,however

,for

a declaration to be made to a monk by believers thatthey took refuge in Buddha

,in the Doctrin e

,and i n the

Order ; b ut a monk might recogni se a b en efic en t personas a lay believer before such profession . In struction in

the doctrin es of Buddha would be" readily given to anyperson who offered hospitality to the monks

,an d as readily

withdrawn from any on e who malign ed or in sulted them .

A serious offen ce was visited by withdrawal of the almsbowl

,an d refusal of hospitality ; b ut such mild ex com

mun ic ation would probably be quite in accordan ce withthe desire of any on e who could speak ill of the Order .

The monks showed con siderable readin ess to re - admitany on e who apologised for his fault an d became reconciled to them . Beyon d this they did n ot greatly con cernthemselves with the private life of the laity . Their truechurch con sisted of the Order ; the rest of mankin d wasscarcely within measurable distan ce of bliss . An d theirmoral state was but fain tly cared for . It is true thatan eightfold abstin en ce was enjoin ed on them

,in cluding

abstin en ce from kil ling an imals,stealing

,lying

,drin king

in toxicating liquors , un chastity, eating after mid- day,and

from perfumes and garlands ; and they must sleep on

hard beds on the groun d . Gen eral meetings of believersdo n ot seem to have been held

,nor were they admitted

to,

meetings of the monks . But praises and promises ofbliss were freely bestowed after this fashion : To give

The laity.

1 74 THE EUDDHIS T DOCTRINE S .

houses to the Order,wherein in safety and in peace to

meditate an d think at ease,the Buddha calls the best

of gifts . Therefore let a wise man,who un derstan ds

what is best for himself,build beautiful houses

,and

receive in to them kn owers of the doctrin e . Let himwith cheerful min d give food to them

,and drink

,raimen t

an d dwelling-places,to the upright in heart . Then shall

they preach to him the doctrin e which drives away all

sufferin g ; if he apprehen ds that doctrin e here below,he

goes sin less in to Nirvana.

” Naturally there was sometimes a tenden cy for monks to exact too much

,and the

sacred books exhibit a stern repression of such practices,

together with con siderable sen sitiven ess as to the Opin ionof the lay-believers .We may here briefly refer to the modern doctrin e

termed “Esoteric Buddhism,

” which fin ds favour withEsoteric some person s in oii r own land. In the BookBuddhism of the Great Decease

,Buddha expressly di s

claims any secret doctrin e of this kin d . Modern EsotericBuddhism Should rather be called a form of Theosophy

,

which takes hold of some poin ts in Buddhism,especially

that of tran smigration or rein carn ation,an d expresses

the belief that souls become rein carn ated in successivebodies

,without remembering what took place in a pre

v ious state of existen ce ; the successive lives being separated from on e an other by “ in tervals of spiritual con

sciousn ess on a plan e of n ature wholly imperceptible toordin ary sen ses . During this stage

,the

'

lower passion sof earth are forgotten an d the higher alon e enjoyed ; an dthe vividn ess of this joy will depen d on the impulse andin ten sity of prev ious upward aspirati on s . Rein carn ation

,

when this impulse 1S exhausted,provides an appropriate

pun ishmen t for ordin ary evil doing .

The word “karma,

” or doin g,

’ is very importan t inEsoteric Buddhism :

_it is explain ed as the law of cause

an d effect in the moral world . It determin es,

according to fixed con sequen ces,the state an d

condition in which rein carn ati on s take place ; on earthgood karma may be laid up, an d bad karma worked out

by suffering . (See A . P . Sinn ett,

“Esoteric Buddhi sm .

’

Karma.

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1 76 M ODERN B UDDHISM

religion s have set themselves to con quer many racesM ieeieh ery

outside their origin al home ; n o others havereligions achieved so much peacefully . Hin duism pro

fessedly restricts itself to the Hin dus . though it has displayed great powers oi absorbing aborigin al races in toitself. Buddhi sm

,Mahom etan ism

,an d Christian ity are

for all people who will receive them ; an d their followershave proved their faith by their mission ary efforts .Sir Mon ier-VViIliam s

,1n his recen t work on Buddhism

,

well expresses the great variety of aspects un der whichBuddhism it is n ecessary to study Buddhism . In variousmany

-s ided coun tries an d periods,

“ its teachin g has becomeboth n egative and positive

,agn ostic an d gn ostic . It

passes from apparen t atheism an d materialism to theism,

polytheism,an d spiritualism . It is

,un der on e aspect

,

mere pessimism,un der an other pure philan thropy ;

un der an other,mon astic commun ism ; un der another ,

high morality ; un der an other , a variety of materialisticphi losophy ; un der an other , simple demon ology ; un deran other

,a mere farrago of superstition s

,in cluding n ecro

man cy,witchcraft

,idolatry

,and fetishism . In some form

or other it may be held with almost any religion ,and

embraces somethin g from almost every creed .

”

At the first Buddhist Coun cil,held at Rajagriha

,after

the death of Gautama,the teachings of the Enlighten ed

The firstOn e were sung in three division s

,n amely

,the

Buddhist Sutras , or Suttas , or words of Buddha to hisCOuHCHS ’ disciples ; the Vin aya , or disciplin e Of the Order ;

an d the Dharma,or doctrin e ; formin g -together the Tripi

takas,or three baskets or collection s . A hun dred years

later,a secon d coun cil

,held at Vesali

,con demn ed the

system of in dulgen ces which had arisen,an d led to the

Splitting of Buddhism in to two parties,who afterwards

gave rise to as many as eighteen sects . But these controv ersies did n ot hin der the spread of Buddhism in

Northern In dia . About the m iddle of the thirdcen tury B .C Asoka

,the kin g of Magadha, or

Behar,gran dson of Chandragupta (Greek

foun der of the kingdom,an d n oted for his conn exion

with Alexan der the Great and Seleucus,became a sort

King Asoka.

THE F0 UR TH (HANISHKA’S ) C0 UN CIL. 1 7 7

of secon d foun der of Buddhism . He foun ded so manymon asteries that his kingdom received the n ame of Lan dof the Mon asteries (Vihara 0 1

4 Behar) . He made it thereligion of the State

,an d held at Patn a the The third

third Buddhist coun cil in 244 B .C .

,which recti 0 0 1111 011

fi ed the doctrin es and can on of Buddhism . Asoka sub sequen tly did much to spread the Order by sen din g out

m i ssion aries ; an d he in culcated its prin ciples by havingthem cut upon l ocks an d pill ars

,an d in caves

,through

a wide ex ten t of In dia . A number of these still exist .The form which the Buddhist scriptures took un der hisinfluen ce

,in the dialect of hi s time an d coun try

,has been

the basis of the manuscripts preserved in Ceylon,in what

is n ow kn own as the Pali language . In every way Asokashowed himself to be on e of the most en lighten ed of

religious mon archs,an d he in n o way sought to make

his v 1ew s triumph by force . His m 1ss1on aries weredirected to mingle equally with all ranks of Asoka s

unbelievers,an d to

“teach better things .

” His edicts

edicts in clude the prohibition of the slaughter of an imalsfor food or sacrifice

,the statemen t of the happin ess to be

foun d in virtue an d the con trast of the tran sitory gloryof this world with the reward beyon d it

,the in culcation

of the doctrin e that the teaching of Buddhist doctrin e andvirtue to others con stitutes the greatest of charitable gifts

,

an order for the provision of medical aid for men and

an imals,the appoin tmen t of guardian s of morality

,etc .

From the time Of Asoka we may date the divergen ceof Buddhism in to its varied n ation al forms ; hen ceforthit is on ly possible to treat the subj ect either by Div ergence

the comparative method or by referring in turn Of b ra-11 011 98

to the developmen t of each main bran ch . Space willon ly permit us to treat each very briefly . The fourthgreat Buddhist coun cil

,held un der Kan ishka

, The fourth

who reign ed from Kashmir widely over n orth (Kani‘

shka’

s)

western In dia,in the first cen tury drew 0 01mm

up three comm en taries on Buddhi sm,which were the

basis for the Tibetan scriptures . This coun cil in dicatesthat Buddhism was firmly an d widely es tabli shed in

In dia,and up to at least A ND 800 it con tinued widely

78 MODERN BUDDHIS/W.

prevalen t there,though Brahman ism was n ever sup

pressed,an d in fact it was gradually absorbing many

Buddhist ideas,an d preparing

,when that Operation was

completed,

- to take its place en tirely . In the beginn ingof the fifth cen tury A .D .

,Fa-hien

,a Chin ese

1 1 -1 13 1 . Buddhist,visiting In dia

,foun d Buddhist monks

an d Brah-man priests equally hon oured an d Buddhistreligious

‘

houses side by side with Hin du temples . In theseven th cen tury the Buddhists were being outnumberedby the

“Hin dus , although there were still powerful B uddhist mon archs and states in In dia . At this periodSfladitya

’s Siladitya appears as a great patron -king

,who

0 0 1111 011 in 684 held an other great coun cil at Kan aujon the Ganges ; but the progress of Brahman ism wasman ifest in the discussion s whi ch took place at

”

thiscoun cil between Buddhists an d Brahman s

,an d by the

worship of the sun god an d of Siva on days succeedingthe in auguration of a statue of Buddha . The divergen cesamong followers of Buddha were seen 1n the disputeswhich took place between the advocates of the Northernand the Southern Canon s

,or the greater and lesser

His good“Vehicles of the law . S iladitya was further

deeds~ n otable for his public distribution of his treasures and j ewels every five years

,after which he put on

a beggar ’s rags ; thus he celebrated Buddha’s Great R e

nun ciation . Near Graya he supported the vast mon asteryof Nalunda

,where it is said that ten thousan d Buddhist

m onks and n ovices pursued their studies and devotion s ;but Gaya

‘

was already a great cen tre of Hin duism . Huen

Huen smugSiang

,who travelled from Chin a through India

‘

1n the seven th cen tury,foun d Brahman i sm

gain ing ground,though Buddhism still flourished in

Southern India . Some of the Hindu reformers persecuted

Decline of it, as already related . It was still comparaIndian tiv ely strong in Orissa and Kashmir in the

Buddmsm' eleven th cen tury,andMagadha con tinued Budd

hi st un til the Mohammedan con quest at the end of thetwelfth cen tury . After that

,Buddhism was practically

extin ct in India .

Why was this ? Partly b ecause,as we have already

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I 80 M ODERN B UDDHISM

an d a large number of commen taries upon them werewritten . It is upon this “Greater Vehicle ” that theBuddhism of Nepaul, Tibet, Chin a , Man chur1a

,Mongolia

,

and Japan is foun ded ; b ut these all differ con siderablyWide range from on e an other. Exten ding over so wideOf Buddhism an d so populou s an area of the earth’s surface

,

Buddhism has been described as being the religion professed b y

' more person s than any other , and has sometimesbeen credited with five hun dred million s of adheren ts .The mistake that is made in such a calculation is eviden twhen We remember that in Chin a

,where the greatest

number of n omin al Buddhists exists,a vast proportion

of the population profess Con fucian ism,Taoism

,an d

Buddhism equally or in differen tly ; and the study of ourchapters on the former will have shown how deep a holdConfucian ism

,an cestor worship

,and the varied forms of

Numb er of Taoism ,have upon the Chin ese . If they were

Buddhists called upon to exclude on e of their religion s,

it is almost certain that Buddhism would be excluded .

It is very doubtful if it is proper to reckon so many asa hundred million s of Chin ese as Buddhists . Again

,we

have seen that Shin toism prevails in Japan,where

,nev er

theless,many people gen erally show some adhesion to

Buddhism . Buddhism,essen tially

,has no lay stan dard

of adheren ce,sin ce the true Buddhists are the monks

on ly . Sir Mon ier-Williams reckon s the number of Buddhi sts at on e hun dred million s ; Dr . Happer , an ex

perien c ed American mission ary in Chin a , estimates thatthere are on ly twen ty million s of real Buddhist believersin Chin a

,and a total of seven ty- two and a half million s

in Asia . But it is a very doubtful thin g to attempt toreckon the numbers of adheren ts of a religion

,and

especially such a religion as Buddhism . It is certain lyon e of the four most prevalen t religion s in the world

SINGHALESE B UDDHISM .

Great indeed is the con trast between modern Buddhism,

Gradual with its elaborate organ isation,its wealthy

modifi cation"mon asteries,its con siderable ritual

,its image

Worship and deification s,and the simplicity of its early

VJHARAS [N CE YLON . 1 81

state as we have sketched it . No doubt this has cometo pass b y a gradual process of adaptation to thosein s tin cts an d desires of the masses of the people whichhave compelled recogn ition in all quarters of

.

the glo b ean d - in almost all religion s

,together with the regard

which grew aroun d Gautama as a perfect man ; an d fromthe first

,great importan ce seems to have been attached

to his relics . Yet it was long before images of Images of

him came in to gen eral use . In Ceylon these Buddha.

are called “Pilamas,

” mean ing coun terpart or liken ess

A BURME SE FUNERAL PROCE SS ION .

They had become numerous in the third,fourth

,and fifth

cen turies A .D .,some being over twen ty feet high and

resplen den t with j ewels . “ The viharas in vmaras mwhich the images are deposited

,says Spen ce Ceylon

Hardy,“ are gen erally

,in Ceylon

,perman en t erection s

,

the walls being plastered an d the roof covered with tiles,

ev en when the dwellings of the priests are mean an dtemporary . Near the entran ce are frequen tly seen fourfigures in relief

,represen ting the guardian s and champion s

of the temple . Surrounding the sanctum there is usually

1 82 M ODERZV B UDDHISM .

a n arrow room ,in which are images an d pain tings ; but

in many in stan ces it is dark . Opposite the door of

en tran ce there is an other door, protected by a screen ,

an d when this is withdrawn,an image of Buddha is

seen,occupying n early the whole of the apartmen t

,with

a table or altar before it, upon which flowers are placed .

Like the temples of the Greeks,the walls are covered

with pain tings ; the style at presen t adopted in Ceylon

greatly resembling , in its gen eral appearan ce , that whichis presen ted in the tombs and temples of Egypt . Thestorymost common ly illustrates some passages in the lifeof Buddha

,or in the births he received as Bodhi - sat .

The viharas are n ot unfrequen tly built upon rocks or inother roman tic situation s . The court aroun d is plan tedwith the trees that bear the flowers most usually offered .

Some of the most celebrated viharas are caves,in part

n atural,with excavation s carried further in to the rock .

The images _of Buddha are sometimes recumben t,at other

times upright,or in a sitting po sture

,either in the act

of con templation,or with the han d uplifted in the act of

giving in struction . At Cotta,n ear Colombo

,there i s a

recumben t image forty- two feet in length . Upon thealtar

,in addition to the flowers

,there are frequen tly

smaller images either of marble or metal . In the shapeof the images

,each n ation appears to have adopted its

own style of beauty,those of Ceylon resembling a well

proportioned n ative of the islan d,whilst those of Chin a

presen t an appearan ce of obesity that would be regardedas anything b ut divin e by a Hin du . The images madein Siam are of a more attenuated figure

,an d comport

better with our idea of the ascetic .

The cave temple at Damballa is on e of the most perfect.On e of its halls con tain s a gigan tic recumben t figure of

Cave Temmes Buddha in the solid rock forty- seven feet long

'

at its feet stan ds an atten dan t an d oppositeto the face is a statue of Vishnu

,who is supposed to have

assisted at the buildin g ; an other has more than fiftyfigures of Buddha

,and statues of several Brahman ic

devas,Vishnu

,Natha

,etc . There is a han dsome dagoba

in this vihara,the spire n early touchin g the roof. The

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84 MODERN B UDDH J SZW.

an cien t,an d in the court-yard of most viharas in Ceylon

Worship of there is on e,said to be derived from the

the BO -tree origin al on e brought to the islan d in the fourthcen tury Usually on e was plan ted on the moun dun der which the ashes of Kan dyan chiefs an d priestswere placed .

The dagoba n ext claims atten tion,but thi s word ap

pears in an other gu ise,as “pagoda ”

; it is derived fromda

,

”an osseous relic

,and geba

,

” the womb,

mean ing the shrin e of an osseous relic . Theword “tope

,

” otherwise stupa,

” a relic,is used for the

same buildings . It is a circular buildin g of ston e,built

on a n atural or artificial elevation,an d its summit is

crown ed with a hemispherical cupola,formerly termin ated

by spires . On e of the great dagobas 111 Ceylon,at Anurad

hapura,was origin ally 405 feet high

,but is n ow n ot more

than 280 feet ; an other , formerly 3 15 feet , is n ow n ot

more than 269 feet . All are built of brick an d coveredwith a preparation of lime

,of a pure white

,an d capable

of high polish,so that when perfect the buildin g resem

bled a crystal dome . At various periods in modern timesthese dagobas have been open ed . On e

,open ed in 1820

in Ceylon,con tain ed in the in terior a small square com

partm en t of brickwork,set exactly towards the cardin al

poin ts . In the cen tre,directly un der the apex

,was a

hollow ston e vase with a cover,con tain in g a small piece

Rencs of of bon e,with some thin pieces of plate gold

,a

Buddha few rings,pearls

,an d beads

,a few clay 1mages

of the sacred n aga,or sn ake g- o

,d and two lamps . Such

relics are either supposed to have been those of Buddhahimself or of some Buddhist sain t

,

‘

an d many m iraclesare ascribed to their virtues . The most celebrated relicof Buddha n ow existin g is in Ceylon

,n amely

,the dalada

,

or left can in e tooth,a piece of discoloured ivory two

in ches long (much too long for a human tooth) . Thi sis preserv ed i n a small chamber in the vihara attachedto the old palace of the Kandyan kings

,en closed in n in e

successive bell- shaped golden an d jewelled cases , eachlocked

,and the key kept by a separate official . On the

walls of the corridor of en tran ce are coloured frescoes of

Dagob as.

VA SE/11 AND P UBLIC [BEADHVGS 1 85

the eight prin cipal hells of Buddhism,in which evildoers

are represen ted being torn asun der by red-hot tongs , orsawn in two

,0 1

4 crushed between rocks,0 1

4 fixed on redhot spikes . Thus does the spirit of gen tle Buddhism fin d

place for practical threats of horrible torture .

Next to the relics in regard are impression s of Bud

dha ’s foot . The most cele b rated is on Adam ’s Peak inCeylon ,

an nually visited by pilgrims .Impressions

It i s a depressmn or excavati on over five feet of Buddha’

s

long,an d three- quarters of a yard wide . R e

fo°t 4

presen tation s of it are div ided in to 108 compartmen ts,

each con tain ing a design or figure,with a wheel in the

cen tre .

The Vassa,0 1

4 residen ce in a fixed abode during the

rainy season,celebrated by reading the Buddhist s crip

tures to the people,is well kept up in Ceylon . Vassa, and

The reading takes place in a temporary build 131119110

ing of pyramidal form,with successive plat readi ngs'

forms,built n ear a vihara . In the cen tre is an elevated

platform for the monks,an d the people sit aroun d on

mats . Lamps an d lan tern s of great variety an d gaycolour are held by the people in their han ds or on theirheads during the reading . Som etimes the scen e is avery attractive on e “ The females are arrayed in theirgayest attire

,their hair being combed back from the

forehead an d n eatly don e up in a kn ot, fasten ed withsilver pin s an d small orn amen tal combs . The usual dressof the m en is of whi te cotton . Flags an d streamers

,

figured han dkerchiefs an d shawls,

float from every con

v enien t receptacle . At in tervals,tom—toms are beaten

the rude trumpet sen ds forth its screams ; an d the dinof the music

,the murmur of the people ’s voices

,the firing

of musketry an d jin j alls , an d the glare of the lamps,

produce an effect n ot much in con son an ce with an act

of worship ”

(Hardy) . Usually on ly the Pali text is read,

so that the people do n ot un derstan d a word,an d many

fall asleep or chew betel . When ever the n ame of Buddhais repeated by the reader

,the people call out simulta

n eously Sadhu,

an exclam ation of joy In many waysthese readings are observed as festiv al occasion s ; they

86 [MODERN BUDDHJS /lf .

take place at each change of the moon,or four times in

the lun ar mon th . Great merit is said to accrue to allhearers who keep the eight precepts upon these servicedays . It is n ot proper to trade or to make trade calculation s on them

,still less to injure any on e .

An other of the ceremon ies in which the laity have ashare is the Pirit

,

” or reading certain portion s of theThe mm Scriptures as an exorcism again s t demon s

,i .e .,

ceremony. really_malign an t spirits who were formerly

men . Certain portion s of the scriptures are supposed toavail specially in this work

,an d these are collectively

termed the Pirit. On e of these con tain s the following :“All spirits here assembled

,those of earth and those of

air,let all such be joyful ; let them listen atten tively to

my words . Therefore hear me , O ye spirits be frien dlyto the race of m en ; for day an d n ight they bring youtheir offerings ; therefore keep diligen t watch over them .

Ye spirits here assembled,those of earth an d those of air

,

let us bow before Buddha,let ‘

us b ow before the Law,

let us bow before the Order The recitation of the Piriton a great occasion con tinues without in terruption throughseven days and n ights

,relays of priests being engaged

,

with many atten dan t circumstan ces of festivity .

We n ow pass to the Buddhist order of monks in Ceylon ,

priests ” as they call themselves n ow - a- days . “In n early

Buddhistall the villages and town s of Ceylon

,

” saysmonks 111 Hardy

,

“ that are inhabited by the Singhalese0 6340 11 4 or Kandyan s , the priests of Buddha are fre

quen tly seen,as they have to receive their food by taking

the alms-bowl from house to house . They u sually walkalong the road at a measured pace , without taking muchn otice of what passes aroun d . They have no coveringfor the head

,and are gen erally barefooted . In the right

han d they carry a fan,in shape n ot much un like a han d

screen,which they hold up before the face when in the

presen tée of women ,that the en tran ce of

_evil thoughtsin to the min d may be prev en ted . The bowl is slungfrom the n eck

,an d is covered by the robe

,except at the

time when alms are received . There are several thousan ds of these living as celibates in simple -

leaf-huts or in

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[MODERN D UDDHl S /lf.

ON THE SACRED PLATFORM OF THE RANGOON PAGODA,

B URM E SE EUDDHISM . 189

a rule,in Ceylon

,the dead are buried ; b ut the bodie s

of monks are burn t un der decorated can opies,which are

left to moulder away .

A very vivid picture of Buddhism in Burm ah has

been given by Mr . Scott in his fascin ating book,

“TheBurman

,

” pub lished un der the pseudonym ofBurmese

Shway Yoe . Every boy goes to the m on monastery

astery school from the age of eight,an d is 5011 0 0 15

taught to read an d write,the chi ef part of the teaching

con sisting of Buddhi stic formulas an d precepts an d,un til

the English took possession of the coun try,every boy

took the yellow robe at the close of his schooling,although

he might retain it b ut for a short time an d as yet com

parativ ely few have thrown off the conven tion al modeof education in favour of the Governmen t schools . On

en tering the Order as a n ovice,at the age of

twelve or more,there is an elaborate ceremony

,

correspon ding to baptism,at whi ch the youth receives

a n ew n ame,showing that it is n ow possible for him to

escape from suffering ; b ut this is again lost when or ifhe return s to the world

,though having born e it en ables

him to add to his merits by good works . The ceremonyin cludes the putting off of fin e clothes

,the shaving of

the head,reciting a Pali prayer to be admitted to the

Order as a n ovice,that he may walk steadily in the path

to perfection,an d fin ally attain to the blessed state of

Neh’b an

,

”as Nirvan a comes to be ren dered in Burmese

,

an d the reception of the yellow robes an d the begging-

pot

from the chief or abbot of the mon astery . Fin ally,there

is a feast at the paren t ’s house . The stay of the n ovicein the mon astery is n ot usually long

,som etimes even

on ly on e day,b ut usually at least through on e rainy

season,or W

'

ah (Vassa , sometimes called Len t by European s) . Those who resolve to adopt the religious lifeen ter upon advan ced studies of Buddhist writings ; b u tmany things hinder the n ov ice

,especially the duty of

atten din g on the monks,beggin g

,carryin g umbrellas or

books for his sen iors . In Lower Burmah the paren ts

Novices.

190 M ODERN E UDDHISM .

sometimes sen d food regularly for their son,b ut thi s would

n ot be allowed in Upper Burmah .

In a Burmese mon astery the whole commun ity i s rouseda little before daylight

,awaken ed by a big bell

,an d after

A Burmese washing, each brother recites a few formulas,

monasterY on e of which is,

“How great a favour has theLord Buddha bestowed upon me in man ifesting to mehis law

,through the observan ce of which I may escape

hell and secure my salvation .

” The en tire brotherhoodassemble roun d the 1mage of Buddha

,recite the morn ing

service,a n d then perform variou s domestic duties

,the

elder only meditatin g . A slight meal an d an hour ’s studyfollowed by the procession of all the monks through

the town,to receive food in the alms-bowl . On their

return a portion is offered to Buddha ’s image,an d

“thenbreakfast is taken . Strictly it ought to con sist of themorn ing ’s gift

,n ot specially dressed ; but usually this is

n ow giv en to the scholars or any chan ce wan derers , whilea tasty meal 1s prepared for the monks . Visits of courtesyor honour fill up part of the day , at which great ceremonyis observed

,the conversation

,according to Shway Yoe

,

coming roun d to the merit of almsgiving . After a lightmeal at n oon . all return to work

,some teaching

,others

studying the Buddhist books,overseein g the writers who

copy manuscripts ; b ut the work of many is merelymeditation

,repeating the formulas of the Order

,

“while,

throughout all,soun ds the din of the schoolroom

,where

the pupils are shouting out their tasks at the top of theirvoices . The n ovices and monks may take a stroll in theeven ing

,b ut at sun set all are summon ed back

,an d the

scholars recite the whole or part of their day ’s w ork tothe abbot So the even ing passes til l 0 1 9

,when all

assemble for devotion,before the image of Buddha . Then

a n ovice loudly proclaims the hour,day

,an d year ; all

b ow before Buddha thrice,an d similarly before the abbot

,

an d then retire . The testimony of Shway Yoe is,that

“ the effect of such a school,presided over by an ab

of in telligen ce an d earn estn ess,must infallibly work

the goodb

of all conn ected with it,an d especially so in

the case of an impulsive,impression able people like the

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192 M ODE RN B UDDHISM .

n eglect of religious duty in a n eighbourhood,the brethren

invert their alms-bowls and cease to go out begging .

This is felt to be so grave a cen sure that it does n ot failto influen ce the most harden ed in a very short time , yetlaxities are n ot un kn own . Some monks will receivemon ey or gold

,0 1

4 will adopt circuitous methods of gettingwhat they desire . So far has this proceeded that an

active sect has arisen in lower Burmah to restore an d

main tain the true austerities and ordin an ces of Buddhism,

an d it has gain ed many adherents among laity as wellas monks . ”

On the whole,the monks are greatly re

v eren ced by the people,who make obeisan ce when they

pass,the women kn eeling down by the roadside in Upper

Burmah . The oldest layman terms himself the disciplecf the youngest monk

,whose common est action s are

spoken of in magn iloquent language .

The mon astery is an essen tial accompan imen t of theBurmese village

,away from bustle

,surroun ded by fin e

Monastery trees . Usually it is b uilt of teak,sometimes

b uildings°

of brick . All are oblong,an d on e s torey high

,

the living rooms being raised eight or ten feet on pillars .

The woodwork is orn amen ted with varied carving '

of

figures and scroll-work ; the roofs appe ar as if con stitutin gsuccessive storeys—three

,five

,or seven . The m ain hall

is divided in to two portion s— on e for the scholars an d ahigher on e for the reception of visitors . At the back of

this,again st the wall

,are images of Buddha 0 11 a sort of

altai4,with can dles

,flower

,s pray1ng flags

,etc . Near th1s

are various treasures,books

,m anuscripts

,chests

,m odels

of mon asteries and pagodas,etc . This hall is also used

as the sleeping place of the monks . Sometimes a numberof these buildin gs are con tain ed within on e en closure .

The most gorgeous group of mon astic buildings in theworld probab ly 1s the Royal Mon astery outside Man dalay .

“Every building in. it is magn ificen t,every in ch carved

with the ingenuity of a Chin ese toy,the whole ablaze

with gold leaf and a mosaic of fragmen ts of looking glass .

The in terior is n o less e laborate . The woodcarving is particularly fine .

” But this i s on ly on e amongmany . The whole space between Man dalay Hill and the

FUNERAL PYR OF A BURMESE PHON -GYEE

194 M ODERN E UDDHJSM .

city is full of mon asteries,some with excellen t libraries

of palm- leaf books while in Lower Burmah many do n otpossess even a complete copy of the three chief books ofthe “Lesser Vehicle .

”It bein g the special privilege

of the lay believers to build an d support mon asteries,

plen ty of scope for such philan thropy is always allowedb ut many mon asteries have a good deal of cash laid away .

The Burmese are taxed most seriously by Buddhism,for

abun dan t almsgiving must be supplemen ted by regularworship at the pagodas .The pagodas of Burmah are still more numerous than

the mon asteries,old crum b ling on es beside n ew glitterin g

Burmese b ulldlfl gs , as In. Ifl dla,Wi th Very many Ima

PagOdaS gin ary relics of Buddha or other sain ts . All

these buildings the Burmese call Zaydee , the offeringplace

,or place of prayer ; while the more n otable .pagodas

are termed Payahs . A reli c or sacred object is buried oren closed in each ; without it n o htee

,

” or umbrella,could

crown its spire . Often these in clude golden images of

Buddha with the hooded sn ake . They are based on theprimitive moun d plan

,combin ed with the lotus

,exten ded

in many cases in to an inverted bell with a Spire . Theyare all made of sun -dried brick

,very liable to decay

,an d

on ly a few are ren ewed or made substan tial en ough forperman en ce . Some of the pagodas are surroun ded at thebase by a circle of smaller pagodas

,each en shrin ing an

image of Buddha .

The most magn ificen t Buddhist temple is”

that at R an

goon ,the Shway Dagohn Payah , con tain ing, it is said ,

The greateight hairs of Gautama Buddha

,beside relics

Rangoon of the three Buddhas who preceded him . Ittemple ' stan ds upon a huge moun d of two terraces

,

the upper 166 feet above the groun d outside,an d in

exten t 900 feet by 685,The long flights of steps by

which the ascent is made are covered by long ranges of

han dsome teak roofs,with frescoes showing scen es in

Buddha’s di sciples ’ lives,an d horrib le scen es of the tor

men ts of the wicked in hell . From the cen tre of theupper terrace rises the solid octagon al brick payah

,870

feet high, ab un dantly gilt . At the top is the htee , or gilt

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196 M ODERN B UDDHISM .

in Burmah . But we must n ot omit to men tion the greatcollection of pagodas at Pagahn ,

the desertedcapital on the Irrawaddy

,exten ding for eight

miles along the bank an d for two mil es in lan d . Colon elYule

,in his “Miss ion to Ava

,

” has described them in

detail . Some are cruciform vaulted temples,with great

galleries an d tran septs , and remin d visitors of o ld-worldcathedrals ; others have min arets , pyramids of fretwork ;some are like huge bulbous mushrooms . It is said thatthere are n early ten thousan d more or less complete , but

Pagahn.

PAGODA AT PAGAHN .

ruin is o n many,an d jungle-bushes have ov ergrown them .

Very many con tain colossal figures of Buddha an d sculptured groups . Again

,Shway Goo

,an islan d between

Mandalay an d Bhamo , is a great cen tre of temples , havingn in e hun dred and n in ety-n in e .

Thus we may gather some fain t idea how deeply thebelief in securing merit by building a pagoda has en teredBurmese In to the n ature Of the Burm ese ; b at , saysWOI‘ ShiPo Shway Yoe

,they are n ot idolaters ; they wor

ship n either relics n or images . The pagoda and the figure

[IMAGE S OF B UDDHA . 197

on ly furn ish a fitting place to praise the great Buddhaan d to resolve to imitate hi s charity and sinl ess life . Noactual prayers are offered to them ; simple praises learn tat the mon astery school

,or special forms made by the

worshipper are repeated,an d their character is sim ilar

to those we have already given samples of. They aren ot merely addressed to the image

,b ut also to the en tire

building,an d may be repeated anywhere

,at a distan ce

from it . Pilgrims to the Rangoon temple prostrate themselves n ow an d again

,from the time they catch sight of

the Spire,repeatin g simple formulae or Pali sen ten ces

of which they may or may n ot kn ow the meaning .

Many of them have little paper prayer flags in variousfan ciful shapes

,having written in the cen tre some pious

sen ten ce i n Pali or Burmese . These are laid on theshr in e

,and add to the merit of the worshipper

,as do the

can dl es,lamps

,flowers

,in cen se sticks

,e tc

,which are

offered. The worshippers,if they are m en

,squat down

,

resting the body on their heels. The body i s ben t alittle forw ard

,and the han ds are join ed together and

raised to the forehead . The women kn eel down altogether

,an d take especial care to cover up their feet . All

are of course barefooted . Before commen cin g the repetition of the formulae

,three prostration s are made with the

forehead to the groun d . It is usual to hold some offeringbetween the han ds during worship

,an d thi s is afterwards

reveren tly deposited on the altar .

Strange to say,the Burmese have but little idea of

perpetuating their images of Buddha ; few are of marbleor brass ; most are of short- lived brick , mortar , Images of

an d wood . The utmost period for whi ch they Buddha

could en dure woul d be as n othing in comparison withthe coun tless future ages . Their variety

,too

,is n ot

great ; they are either stan ding in the preachin g attitude

,sitting cross- legged

,or recumben t and represen tin g

the approach of death . The erect figures are usuallyvery large ; these are common in Upper Burmah

,some

forty feet high ; m any have been an d are frequen tlygil t . In Lower Burmah the whole of the receptaclesn ear the shrin es are crammed full of little images of all

198 .M ODERN B UDDHZS IW.

kin ds . On ly a few great images are carved or placed inthe open .

The ignoran t in some cases ascribe miracles to par ticularimages or relics

,b ut all en lighten ed Buddhists strongly

repudiate those beliefs,and onlyunprin cipled monks can

n ow an d then be got to propagate them . There is on e

n oteworthy marble Buddha at the foot of Man dalay Hill,

twen ty-fiv e feet high,carved out of on e block

,scores

of ton s i n weight. An other on the tOp of the hill hasgold leaf on ly on the eyeballs

,and its con stan t ren ewal

by the faithful causes the pupils to protrude frightfully.

Other n otable images are formed of bricks laid again strock surfaces Many are deserted

,marks of past popula

tion s,still reveren ced by the chan ce vi sitor

,but regarded

more with curiosity than adoration .

The pagoda feasts are the great holidays of the Burmese,

each shrin e having its own day,an d they con siderably

Pagoda, resemble the great fairs of medieval Europe,

fea"ts~ a few minutes spen t at the shrin e,reciting

sen ten ces in praise of Buddha,suffi cmg for the devotion s

of most of the visitors,while a few listen to the reading

an d expoun ding of the sacred books by the head of themon astery . The four feast days every mon th are alsowell observed

,and have in gen eral been made to coin cide

with Sun day in Lower Burmah sin ce the British occupation ; but there is much variation in the strictn ess withwhich the day is kept . The three mon ths of Wah (correspon ding to Vassa) are kept as a sort of Len t

,without

fasting,but with special observan ce of religious duties

,

an d absen ce of feasts and marriages . Often the richerpeople get monks to expoun d the law in their houses

,

and invite their frien ds to hear them . The en d of thisseason is celebrated by a carn ival

,in cluding in Rangoon

much feasting an d even plays in the mon asteries an d

gran d illumin ation s .Notwithstan ding the firm hold which Buddhism has

upon the Burmese,they still propitiate the n ature- spirits

or n ats,as if Buddhism were unkn own . The

word “n at

”in Burmese has two distin ct mean

ings,on e kin d of n ats being the inhabitan ts of the six

Nat worship.

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zoo M ODERN BUDDHJSM'

.

In fact,the whole category of local spirits

,disease Spirits

,

demon s,omen s

,and magic-workers i s to be foun d in’

con

siderab le force 1n Burmah,though greatly frown ed upon

by the Buddhist priests . Lucky an d un lucky day,s days

proper for Special things or improper for others,have also

very great influen ce l Il Burmese life,an d in them the

astrologers fin d great profit . So that con curren tly withthe more advan ced n otion s of Buddhism

,there

may be foun d i n Burmah practically the wholeroun d of primitive n otion s about the spirit w orld . Thebutterfly spirit is the Burmese idea of the essen tial spiritof human life , which may wander in dreams , be charmedor afflicted by demon s and wizards

,be preserved by

witch doctors,and which fin ally departs at death .

Marriage in Burmah i s n ot a religious ceremony,being

con trary to the celibate ideas of the monks,but 1n burials

funerals the latter are largely con cern ed . They areof laity summon ed to stay in the house of death as a

protection from evil spirits ; they deliver addresses on

the van ity of human desires an d the un certain ty and

wretchedn ess of life they receive large alms,determin ing

the exten t of their services,and at the grave they recite

the five comman dmen ts and the ten good works,and

various sen ten ces in Pali . When they are leaving withtheir alms

,the chief mourn er pours water on to the

groun d an d'

says ,“May the deceased and all presen t share

the merit of the offerings made and the ceremon ies n owproceeding

,that the earth may remember it when m en

forget . For a week after,feasting and mourn ing go on

in most cases,the monks receiving offerings

,reciting Pali

sen ten ces,drivin g off evil Spirits

,and purifying the house .

Many people in Burmah are still cremated .

The fun eral of a monk is very differen t . When hedies

,he simply return s to on e of the various heaven s

,and

Funerals his fun eral is called “Phongyee byan ,the

Of monks return of the great glory . A n otable monkhas a fun eral that i s atten ded by people from all aroun d .

After elaborate preparation s,the b ody is en closed in a

gorgeous sarcophagus,pain ted with religious subjects an d

v ariously decked . It lies in state for mon ths un der an

Animism.

STAME SE TEM PLE S . 2 0 1

Open teak building called a mon astery for the dead,

hung with gift-paintings of all kin ds of subjects aridvari ous other gifts

,and i s visited by streams of pilgrims

,

who say their religious sen ten ces,make offerings of flowers

an d fruit,an d give con tribution s towards the fin al cere

mony. Thi s is the erection an d burnin g of the fun eralpyre : an elaborately decorated seven -roofed building

,

with a spire rising to seven ty feet, is erected in a spacecleared of jungle

,the fun eral car

,previous to the coffin

being placed upon it,is the subject of a prolonged “tug

of war,

’ ’ the victory Of those who are privileged to dragthe car bringing abun dan t merit to them an d beinghighly prized . The coffin 1s at last dragged to the pyreand lifted to its platform

,ben eath whi ch an abun dan t

supply of combustibles is heaped . Fin ally the whole islighted by rockets fired from a distan ce . The bon es ofthe deceased are gathered up an d buried n ear the pagoda .

Unlike other Buddhi st coun tries,a shrin e or pagoda is

not erected over the dead in Burmah .

SIAMESE B UDDHISM

After this accoun t of Burmese Buddhism it will n ot ben ecessary to say much of its Siamese form

,which 1s very

similar . The Siamese monks,though their mon asteries

are sometim es elaborate buildings,on ly remain in them

during the rainy season . The sacred footprin t of Buddha,

five feet long by two broad,kn own as the Phra Bat

,is

greatly ven erated,and has a shrin e erected over it

,at

which valuable gifts are offered . There is n o real liken essto a foot

,an d the cavity has scarcely any markings on

it ; b ut it is ven erated as a genuin e relic . There areplen ty of markings on the supposed genuin e copies of it

,

divided in to 108 compartmen ts,with figures having an

elaborate symbolic relation ship to Buddhi sm . On the

whole,it may be said that Buddhism is more strictly

observed in Siam than in Burmah .

The great temple,

“Wat Poh ,

”in Bangkok

,con tain s

an en ormous gilt figure of the dying Buddha, Siamese

about 160 feet long,con structed of bricks

,temples

lacquered and heavily gilt . The huge foot-soles are in

2 0 2 IWODERN BUDDH]SM .

laid with mother-of—pearl figures illustrating stories of

Buddha ’s life . The floor is of tesselated marble . An othergreat temple

,— the “Wat Chang

,

” or Elephan t Temple,

has a lofty spire with extern al decoration in remarkablepattern s which at a distan ce look like mosaics of preciousston es

,b ut are in truth n othing but a mixture of broken

glass,crockery

,an d shells . A represen tation of the three

headed elephan t is promin en tly placed on each of thefour facades of this temple .

Cremation is the usual mode of disposmg of the dead .

Priests pray day an d n ight in the house un til the bodyis removed to the temple-groun ds . The in terval

crematmn' between death an d burial varies accordin g tothe rank and wealth of the family it may even be protracted for mon ths

,durin g which the prayers go on

con tinuously,the coffin being covered with flowers . But

the devouring of bodies by vultures and dogs is n ot atall un common .

The Laos believe that children are the offspring of

the spirits ; an d when n ewly born,they are placed on the

Newb orn top of the ladder leading to the house, and

Children the spirits are called to take away the child aton ce or n ot to molest it afterwards . Various offerings tothe spirits are made ; an d on the secon d day the childis con sidered out of their power

,an d is n omin ally sold

to some relative for a trifle,it being supposed that the

Spirits would n ot take what has been thus sold .

The Siamese as a rule have b ut on e wife : The Buddhist priests are called in to the marriage ceremony

,read

an extract from their scriptures,and pray for a blessing

on the_ pair, who are then sprinkled with holy .water .

After further prayers an d feasting the marriage is com

plete .

It is sign ifican t of possibilities of Buddhist revival thatin Siam in

,

recen t " years free Buddhist churches haveR eformed arisen

,rej ecting the miraculous an d mythical

sects in Siam elemen ts,an d recurring to the pure moral

teachings of the foun der . The late kin g gave a powerfulsupport to these churches and their efforts . His foreignmin ister

,Chao Phya Phraklang, wrote

“a book explain

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1 111111111 PR h C lOUS ONE S (CHINE SE BUDDHISM) .

CHAPTER 1X.

111011214

11 Bub b b ism. iii .

Tib etan Buddhism—Tib etan Scriptures—Worship of the Triad—The Bodhisatvas—Maitreya—The Dhyani -Buddhas -Buddhist heavens - The Lamas

-The Grand Lamar —History of Tib etan Buddhism—The Mongol emperors-The Dalai and Panchen Lamas—Succession of Grand Lamas—Greatmonasteries—The Vatican of Buddhism—Interv iew wi th Grand LamaTashi Lunpo

—Pray‘

ing b y machinery—Prayer cylinders—Prayer wallsand flags—Dailyworship of monks -Festivals —I-‘asts—The Papal domainof Buddhism—Chinese Buddhism~ 1ntroduction of Buddhism to China

Chinese life of Buddha—Mythical details —Buddhist patriarchs - The

Buddhist b ooks translated—Opposition of Confucianists—Bodhidharma.—The Mongol emperors -Modern discouragement—Present state —TempIeS

— Images in the halls—Realism of images—Kwan-yin—Anntab haHalls of 500 saints—Tien-tai—Schools of Chinese Buddhism—The Lin

t-si—Monasteries and monks—Ascetics—Nunneries—Popular aspect

Buddhist calendar Influence of Buddhism on China—The Do-NothingSect Japanese Buddhism—The Shin -Shin .

domin ate the n ation al life . The Buddhis t leaderspractically rule and possess the en tire land

,paying little

more than nomin al allegian ce to Chin a .

1 Their hierarchy,

THE Buddhism of Tibet may be said to pervade and

1 See Sir Mon ier-William s’

s“ B uddhism —Edkin s ’ s “ Chinese Bud

dhism and “R eligion in China—B eal’s Chin ese Buddhism .

”

2041

THE B ODH J -SA T VA S . 2 0 5

mon asteries,ceremon ies

,an d images are repeatedly ih

stan ced as the most elaborate parallel which can be foun dto the Roman Catholi c system 4

an d it is certain thatBuddhism in Tibet pres en ts an almost complete con trastto the simplicity of Gautama ’s Order . It did n ot reachTibet till the seven th cen tury when it had alreadya history of more than a thousan d years behin d it

,an d

had gain ed predomin an ce in Kashm ir an d Nepal . TheTibetan s

,like other Mongoloid peoples

,had a Shaman istic

n ature worship,with much magi c an d sorcery an d dread

of spirits,

an d it is l ittle doubtful that their previousbeliefs largely influen ced the modification which Buddhi smun derwen t .

We will first give some n otion of the developmen tswhich the cen tral doctrin es of Buddhism un derwen t inthe Tibetan Scriptures . The Triad

,Buddha

, Tib etan

the Law or Doctrin e,and the Order had already Scriptures .

become ven erated,and we find that Fa hi en on his travels

committed himself to the Order as a sort of person ality,

invoking it by its “dread and supern atural Worship of

power .” Images of Buddha became common,the Tried

and at a later period the Law an d the Ordei4 began tobe symbolised among the n orthern peoples . The Law isn ow often represen ted as a man (a woman in Sikkim)with four arms

,tw o han ds folded i n worship

,or raised

,

a thi rd holdin g a book or a lotus,the fourth a rosary or

a garlan d ; b ut the Law 1s in some cases on ly represen tedby a book . The Order is depicted as a m an with on e

han d holding a lotus,and the other lyin g on his kn ees .

Strangely en ough,the order of arrangemen t of these

thr ee represen tative figures is n ot un iform .

The n ext further developmen t of Buddhism was con

n ected with Gautama ’s Bodhi- satva state . Before he was

born on earth,he was believed to have last The Bedhi

ex isted ih a state of self- enlighten ed knowledge satvaS

as a Bodhi- satva,an d to have volun tarily chosen to b e

come a saviour of the world before attain ing the Nirvan ato which he w as en titled . He led hi s followers to lookfor the adv en t of an other Buddha

,n ow a Bodhi- satva

,

known as Maitreya,

“ the compassion ate one,

” after

2 0 6 M ODERN B UDDHJSM .

years when Gautama should have been forgotten an d

the Law n o longer obeyed . At presen t he isbelieved to preside in the heaven of con ten ted

beings and to watch over all Buddhists an d their in terests .In asmuch as he lives an d is the future Buddha

,n ot

merely on e who has passed away,he has become an

object of worship an d prayer. Huen—Siang reported thatit was said

,N0 words can describe the person al beauty

of Maitreya . He declares a law n o t differen t from ours .His exquisite voice is soft an d pure .

”And his wor

shippers look forward to attain ing his heaven and listening to his voice .

Beyon d this,the memory of the leading disciples of

Buddha and those who became promin en t later for theirholy life

,ability

,or zeal in propagating the faith

,was in

process of time exalted in to what could on ly be properlycompared with can on isation or almost deifi cation . AlsoSolitary an idea grew up that there were selfedependen tBuddhas solitary Buddhas and many Bodhi- satv as . The

Great Vehicle or Maha-yan a teaches that there will benumberless supreme Buddhas

,Bodhi- satv as and solitary

Buddhas,who will attain their position by their virtues

an d wisdom ; and these Bodhi- satv as are represen ted asen joying heaven in defin itely without aimin g at Nirvan a .

In fact,the Tibetan idea is

,that these Buddhas and

sain ts on ly descen d in their c orporeal eman ation s uponearth

,much like the avatars of the Hin du gods being

in corporate in a succession of sain ts . Naturally they are

much reveren ced,as they are believed to raise their wor

shippers to the blissful heaven where they abide . Thusdid Buddhism give promise of heaven s which wereattain able

,an d throw in to the backgroun d the far-distan t

Nirvan a .

In the third cen tury three Bodhi- satv as were worshipped ih Northern In dia besides Maitreya . At firstprotectors of Buddha

,they were gradually credited with

the fun ction of watching over all Buddhists . The first,

Avalokitesvara,the lord that looks down (with pity) , is

in Tibet regarded as a sort of supreme Spirit,who

,while

remain ing ever in heaven,becomes incarnated in suc

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0 8 ZlIODERN BUDDH]SM

Brahma gods , and Brahma rules there , b ut ye t is greatlyinferior to Buddha . All these gods have to pass in to a

n ew form of existen ce after vast periods of time .Fin ally

,

there are four heaven s of formless beings . All theirmythology, though departing en ormously from primitiveBuddhism ,

does n ot violate the view that Buddhist Arhats( sain ts) an d Buddhas are ranked above all the populardivin ities . We n eed n ot en large upon other addition sto Buddhism from Hin duism

,and also from popular

beliefs in demon s,spirits of an imals

,n ature spirits

,

sorcery,’

and magic . These addition s are abun dan t,and

ri se but little,if at all

,above the correspon ding ideas

an d practi ces among savage races .We Shall n ot detail the inferior gradation s of the Tibetan

monkhood b ut pass on at on ce to the superior mon ks,

who are rightfully termed Lamas,or superior

teachers,and are

,like European abbots

,heads

of mon asteries . Some of theses

are believed to be in carn ation s of deceased sain ts and Bodhi—satvas ; they are

con sequen tly termed Avatara Lamas . The lowest gradeof these represents a sain t or the foun der of a greatmon astery ; the secon d grade is a living eman ation of

The Grand a Bodhi—satva while the highest or Gran dLamae Lama is an in carn ation of a supreme Buddha

or his Bodhi- satva ; to them a wide range of authority isassign ed. There is also a female hierarchy in the conven ts

,with its female avatars .

To un derstan d the Tibetan system,we must sketch in

brief its history . The first mon asteries were founded atHistory of Lhassa in hon our of two prin cesses

,wives of

Tib etan the Tibetan king who in troduced Buddhism .

Buddhl sm'

In the eighth cen tury the tran slation of theen larged (Maha-yan a) can on of Buddhist scriptures in toTibetan was begun . It exten ded to 108 volumes (formin gthe Kan jur), and wa s followed by 225 volumes of comm en tarie s an d g en eral literature , kn own as the Tan jur .After several fluctuation s

,in the latter part of the

eleven th c en tury Buddhism again revived,

‘

un der the

influen ce of Atisha from Kashmir and Brom Ton,a

Tibetan . Many mon asteries were foun ded in that and

THE DALA I AND PANCHE N LAM A S .

i

2 0 9

the n ext cen turies,those at Sakya an d R aseng being the

most importan t . B aseng,foun ded by Brom Ton in 1058

,

was devoted to the strict rules of Buddhism (the yellowsect) ; Sakya was more lax, an d became the The Mehgel

headquarters of the red sect,many of whom emperors

were married before becomin g monks . In the thirteen thcen tury the power of the Mongols spread over Tibet.Kublai Khan adopted Buddhism an d greatly favouredthe Tibet monks . Already great authority had gatheredroun d the chiefs of the Sakya an d the B aseng mon asteries

,an d Kublai exerted his authority to appoin t the

n ephew of the ruler of the Sakya mon astery to succeedhis un cle

,an d made him a tributary ruler over Tibet .

In return for his authority,he an d hi s successors were

required to crown the Mongol emperors . This first Gran dAvatara Lama

,kn own as Phuspa Lama , devised the

Mongol alphabet,started a revision of the Tibetan Bud

dhist texts,whi ch prepared the way for their tran slation

in to Mongolian,and foun ded many mon asteries . When

the Ming dynasty supplan ted the Mongols in Chin a,they

con tinued to favour the Tibetan Lamas,b ut raised three

other chi ef Lamas to similar rank . At the en d of thefourteen th cen tury there arose a reformer

,Tsong Khapa ,

who,after studying the origin als of the Buddhist scrip

tures in Tibet,raised again the stan dard of orthodoxy

,

an d gathered i4 0und him many thousan d monks of the

strict yellow sect ; he built an d became the first head of

a great mon astery at Galdan,and his followers built

others . He wrote many books,restored celibacy

,abolished

many superstitious forms of worship,an d ren ewed the

practice of retiremen t for meditation at a fixed season,

which had no t been kept up in Tibet owing to its lackof a rainy season After hi s death in 1419 (sin ce celeb rated at the Feast of Lamps

,as hi s ascen sion to heaven ),

he was reveren ced as an i n carn ation of Amitabha,Man

j u- sri,or Vajra-pani

,an d his image is still seen The De la, and

in temples of the yellow sect,with those of the Panchen

Dalai an d Pan chen Lamas on the right an dLamas

left . Sin ce hi s time (though it cann ot be precisely traced)there has arisen the practice of discovering each n ew

2 10 M ODERN B UDDHISM .

in carn ation in an infan t,probably to avoid discussion s

and competition . At any rate , at presen t there are twoGran d Lamas : on e the Dalai or Ocean Lama

,at Lhassa

,

the other the Tashi or Pan chen Lama at Tashi Lunpo ,not far from the British In dian fron tier . The former isbelieved to be an in carn ation of the Dhyan i-Bodhi- satvaAvalokitesvara

,the latter of his father or Dhyan i-Buddha ,

Amitabha ; but the Dalai Lama is by far the mostpowerful

,or rather his represen tative

,an elected chief

Lama who attends to busin ess,while the Dalai himself

Succession of i s supposed to b e lost in divin e meditation ,and

Grand Lamas receives the reveren ce and worship due to hischaracter and origin . There appear to have been variousmodes of keeping up the succession

,viz .

,by the dying

Lama stating in what family he would again become

in carn ate,or by con sulting sacred b ooks an d soothsayers ,

or by the Pan chen Lama in terpreting the tradition s anddiscovering the n ew Dalai Lama

,and vice verse. Now-a

days the Chin ese court has a predomin an t influen ce inchoosing n ew Gran d Lamas . Ye t all the forms of divination

,sign s

,choice by lot

,etc .

,are gon e through ; and

similar proceedings take place in the election of all Lamasin whom sain ts are supposed to b e in carn ated . The same

is the case in various Mongolian mon asteries . NVhenthe choice has been made

,the child is brought before a

great assembly of the monks,and is expected to recogn ise

clothes,books

,etc .

,belonging to the deceased Lama

,and

to an swer question s as to his former life as Lama . Amongthe chief Lamas may b e men tion ed those of Galdan(where the body of Tsong Khapa is said to b e still visiblepoised in the air

,and un corrupt). Kurun in Mongolia

,

Kuku in Tartary , the Dharma-rajah of Bhutan,and the

Gran d Lama of Peking . The Dharma-rajah of Bhutan,

belonging to the Red sect,has for his titles : Chief of

the realm,Defender of the Faith

,Equal to Sarasvati in

learn ing,Chief of all the Buddhas

,Head- expoun der of

the Shastras, Caster out of devils , Mos t learn ed in the

holy laws,an Avatar of God

,Absolver of sin s

,an d Head

of the best of all religion s .”

While in many parts of n orthern Buddhistic coun tries

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2 1 2 M ODE RN B UDDHIS M .

these two capitals,and there are at least thirty large

mon asteries i n and n ear Lhassa . Potala,on the n orth

west of Lhassa,has been the abode of all the Dalai

The Vatican Lamas sin ce the fifth,Navan g Lob sang (1617

Oi Buddhism who rebuilt it . This great building,

four storeys high,on a comman ding height

,has in or

conn ected with it ten thousan d rooms for monks . Everywhere are statues of Buddha an d other sain ts

,an d varied

offerings of the pious,who thr ong to Lhassa to pay their

worship to the Gran d Lama,with gifts of gold

,silver

,

and copper . The great building is surmoun ted by a

cupola overlaid withb

gold .

Thomas Mann ing i s the on ly Englishman who has everseen a Dalai Lama ; this was on the 17th December, 1811 .

Interview He desciib ed him as a cheerful,in telligen t

with Grand child of seven”

. Mr . Sarat Chandra Das,C .I .E

,Lama“

saw the presen t Dalai Lama in 1882 . Thein terview , was con ducted with impressive silen ce and

dignity b y the high officials . Con secrated water colouredyellow with saffron was sprinkled on the company ; ihcen se

,great lamps

,an d a yellow hat with _ fiv e poin ts

(den oting the fiv e Dhyan i-Buddhas) are importan t ele

men ts in the ceremon ial,which is n ot complete withoutall sharing tea with the Lama from a golden teapot

,

preceded by a grace in prOper Buddhist form ,and con

cluding thus .

“Never even for a momen t losing sightof the three Holies (Buddha, the Law,

and the Order) ;always offer reveren ce to the Tri-rath as (or three j ewels)let the blessings of the three b e upon us .” Con secratedrice

,touched by the Gran d Lama , was distributed to the

faithful . The sacred youth sat all through the ceremonycross- legged on a thron e like altar with wooden lion s on

either side .

It is said that Lhassa almost vies with Ben ares and

Mecca as a place of pilgrimage,Potala

,the Vatican of

Buddhi sm,being the great resort

,an d the rice

,the pills

of blessing,the scraps of silk

,and the prayer-papers or

flags which the Gran d Lama has con secrated,are treasured

for life .

Tashi Lunpo , with its g reat mon astery of the Panchen

P RA YJNG B Y M ACHINER Y. 2 1 3

Lama,has been much more frequen tly visited by Euro

pean s . This mon astery is much more variedcon sisting of several hun dred distin ct houses

,

surroun ded by pinn acled gilded temples an d topes . It i s,

however,in conn ection with the oldest mon astery— La

brang in Lhassa— that the greatest temple of Buddhismin Tibet is to be foun d. It is three storeys high

,with

a portico and colonn ade of huge wooden pillars . Oppositethe en tran ce are the usual great statues of the four greatkings ; beyon d is a long oblong hall , like a basilica, withrows of column s dividing it in to three longitudin aldivision s

,with two tran septs . The walls con tain n o

win dows,b ut across the cen tral division or n ave is

stretched tran sparen t oil- cloth,which is the on ly mode

of admission of daylight to the building . A row of smallchapels flanks each side of the long building . In the

tran septs are seats for the monks,and beyon d the secon d

is a san ctuary with an altar for offerings at the extremewest end

,in a special recess

,is a gran d altar with many

steps,and on the summit is the revered gilt image of

Gautama Buddha,respecting the origin of which vari ous

stories are told . On the upper steps of the altar aremany images of deified sain ts

,and the temple con tain s

very many images an d pictures of Buddha,sain ts an d

leities,as well as relics . In fron t of this altar are lofty

.hron es for the Dalai an d Pan chen Lamas,

flanked bymaller on es for the other Avatar Lamas ; seats of lesslign ity are provided for the heads of mOn asterieS an d

ligher orders of monks in the western tran sept . Fivehousan d oil lamps give light

,and the mutteri ng of the

b ief Buddhist formula goes on con tinually. Tibetanamples are usually much smaller than this ; the chiefatures are altars with images of Buddha and the Bodhiitv as

,bowls for offerings

,bells

,etc .

The Tibetan Buddhists have outdon e ev ery other raceon e respect ; that is , in praying by machin ery. Im

4essed with the impoi tan ce of accumulating Praying b y

ligious merit as a mean s of shorten ing their machinery

iy in lower forms of life , and accelerating their en tran ceheaven

,they n ot on ly orally repeat multitudes of

Tashi Lunpo.

2 14 IlIODERN B UDDHISM .

times the “jewel formula,which has acquired such

vogue among them,b ut they get it repeated by turn ing

machin es or exten din g flags to the win d, in or on whichthe sacred formula is wri tten . This formula con sistsmerely of the sen ten ce

,

“Om man i padme Hum .

” Thefirst syllable is the Hin du sacred syllable ; the n exttwo words mean

,

“ the Jewel in the Lotus,

an allusion

,it is said

,to Avalo kitesv ara as the patron of

Tibet appearing from or seated on a Lotus . The lastsyllable is regarded by some as an Amen . The whole ,

formula is thought by Sir Mon ier-Williams to have somerelation to Hin du Siva-worship

,and

,he says

,n o other

prayer used by human beings in any quarter of the globeis repeated so often . Every Tibetan believes it to b e a

pan acea for all evil,a compen dium of all kn owledge

,a

treasury of all wisdom,a summary of all religion .

” E achof its syllables is believed to influen ce on e of the sixcourses or stages of tran smigration through which allmust pass

,dimin ishing his stay in them

,or in time

abolishing it altoge ther .

The favouriteo

prayer cylinders are of metal,having

the mystic invocati on engraved on the outside,while the

cavity is filled with paper in rolls,on which it is written

Prayeras many times as possible . This cylin der can

cylinders be made to revolve on a han dle,an d is whirled

in the han d,or rotated by a chain or string . All

day long,

” says Capt . Gill in “The River of GoldenSan d

,

” “n ot on ly the Lamas

,b ut the people may be

seen muttering the un iversal prayer,an d twisting their

cylin ders,invariably in the same direction with the han ds

of a clock . On e or more great cylin ders,in scribed with

this sen ten ce,stan d at the en tran ce to every house in

Tibet,and a member of the household or a guest who

passes is always expected to give the cylinder a twi st forthe welfare of the establishmen t . At almost every rivu

let the eye is arrested by a little building that i s at firstmistaken for a water mill but which on close in spectioni s foun d to con tain a cylin der

,turn ing

.

by the force of thestream

,and c easelessly sen ding up p i ous ejaculation s to

heaven ; for every turn of a cylinder on which the prayer

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2 16 M ODERN B UDDHISM .

temple or chapel three times a day for worship : at sun

Deflyrise

,midday

,and sun set . They are summon ed

worship of by a loud con ch- shell trumpet,an d en ter in

monks ‘ procession . A bell gives the sign al to commen cerepeating or chan tin g prayer formulas

,passages of the

Law ,litan ies

,etc .

,often with n oisy musical accompan i

men ts . The ritual is varied by each m onk repeating asen ten ce in turn ,

the recital of the praises and titles of

hon our of Buddha or on e of the Bodhi- satvas . Whenon e of the Gran d Lamas is presen t

,the service is very

elaborate . In cen se and perfumes are burn t,an d at times

holy water an d grain are distributed . In some ceremon iestea- drinkin g is a con spicuous elemen t . Laymen playb ut a very subordin ate part in these services . They areallowed to be presen t

,repeating prayers an d invocation s

an d making offerings ; they may also acquire merit bywalking roun d mon asteries

,temples

,etc .

,without stop

ping . Sometimes they carry loads of books con tain ingprayers

,an d frequen tly prostrate themselves at full len gth

on the groun d ; at the end of their journ ey they are heldto have gain ed the same merit as if they had recited all

the prayers in the books they carried .

The Tibe tan s have a number of Special festivals whichwe can on ly briefly men tion . The n ew year ’s celebration

,

lasting a,fortnight

,is a sort of carn ival at the

water-festival in August or September,rivers

and lakes - are blessed,and the people bathe to wash away

their sin s. Buddha ’s birthday and the ann iversary of

his death are very importan t days ; on the latter,‘

everymon astery an d temple

,and every house

'

in Lhassa isdarken ed with the burn ing of in cen se . The festival oflamps

,the ascen t of Tsong Khapa to heaven ; and days

of Spirit-hun ting an d performan ces of religious dramas,

are among the diversified holidays of Tibet . Periods of

fasting,e specially before the great festivals , are observedby the devout . Of c ourse these are more ohserved by the monks of the yellow sect . On e

of these periods of fasting lasts four days,during which

the monks confess their faults an d meditate on the evilsof demerit . On the third day n o food whatever is taken

,

Festivals.

Fasts .

THE CALL TO WORSHIP IN A BUDDHIST MONASTERY.

2 18 M ODERN B UDDHIS Il/l .

and not even the saliva must be swallowed not a word is ’

spoken,and each monk is engaged without in termission

in silen t prayer and con fession . Many monks keep thefour holy days of each mon th as fast days .Tib et

,then

,is the Papal domain of Buddhism . Some

lamasseries are en ormously rich . They own half the

The Papal c oun try, con stan tly rece ive legacies, _

an d.

evendomain of grow ri ch by usury . No taxes are pai d byBuddh l sm' them

,an d their own lan ds are atten ded to by

large numbers of slaves . Many of the monks do n ot keeptheir vows of celibacy

,an d the common people are said

in their hear ts to detest the Lamas for their Oppression .

Whether this is gen erally true or n ot,every rational

mind will agree that Tibetan Buddhism is by n o mean san unmixed good .

The influen ce of Buddhism in Chin a is still great,

though not as exten sive as formerly,owing to the loss of

the patron age of the emperors ; b ut it exists in a con siderably modified form . The worship of Pu- sah

,

” says Dr.

Beal,

“ in the houses of the rich and poor,is hardly

recogn ised as Buddhist in its origin ; an d,in de ed

,the

very term Pu-sah,which is the Chin ese form of Bodhi

satva,is explain ed as of n ative origin

,and Sign ifying

‘un iversal ben evolen ce

,

’ whilst the o b jects of Buddhistworship

,such as the Goddess of Mercy and the Queen of

Heaven,have been placed among the number of their

gen ii .” Also the image s of Pu- sah are to be foun d inthe houses of many officials and others who would denythat they were Buddhists .Chinese Buddhism dates from A .D . 61

,when the Em

peror Ming- ti is said to have had a dream in which he

Introduction saw a golden figure of a god hovering overof Buddhism his palace . He inquired of on e of his min isters15° Ch ina” what this c ould mean

,and was told that a

divine person n amed Buddha had been born in the West,

an d that his“

dream was probably c onn ected with him .

The emperor in con sequen ce sen t a mission to In dia toob tain b ooks an d n ews con cern ing this person . They

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2 2 0 MODERN B UDDHIS /lf .

could receive it,he assumed the gu ise of an ascetic

,

preached the four primary truths,established the order

of monks,an d sen t them out to propagate his doctrin e .

He is afterwards said to have subdued a fierce sn ake an dto have m ade him take the vows of the order ; to haveresisted the fiercest temptation s of the king of the Maras

,

an d to have gon e to the Tushita heaven to in struct hismother Maya . Then followed the reception of his son

Rahula an d other boys as n ovices,the admission of

women,the establishmen t of disciplin e

,etc . Sakya is

said to have gon e to Ceylon himself,to have visited the

middle heaven s,to have secured the gods (devas) as

protectors of his doctrin e,to have sen t Visv akarma an d

fifteen daughters of. devas to be the patron s of Chin a .

He in stituted the daily service an d ordain ed hon our forhis books . In his last days he gave forth his mostperfect works

,

“The Lotus of the Good Law”

and

Nirvan a,

”i n ten ded to make his disciples long for higher

attainmen ts . This was his mean ing,say the Chin ese

Buddhist authors,when he said

,

“I am n ot_to be de

stroyed,but shall be con stan tly on the moun tain of

in struction .

” Buddha,en tering Nirvan a

,is n ot dead

,

but lives in his teaching . Before his death he is said tohave had presen ted to him images of himself of gold an d

san dal-wood,which he con secrated

,giving his di sciples

in charge to them . At this time also he forbade theeating of an imal food . His death an d cremation wereatten ded by marvels too numerous to men tion .

In the Chin ese records we are in troduced to a longseries of Buddhist patriarchs

,the successive chiefs and

defen ders of Buddhist law an d disciplin e,each selected

Buddhist by the last patriarch , the first being MahaPatriamhs Kashiapa, appoin ted by Buddha . A patriarch

,

says Dr . Edkin s , is represen ted as“on e who does n ot

look at evil and dislike it ; nor does he , when he sees thatwhich is good , make a strong effort to attain it . He doesn ot put wisdom aside an d approach folly ; n or does hefling away delusion and aim at comprehen ding truth .

Yet he has an acquain tan ce with great truths which isbeyon d being measured

,and he pen etrates in to Buddha ’s

OPP OS ITIOJV OF CONFUCIANJ S TS .

m ind to a depth that cann ot be fathomed .

” Such an on e

had magical powers,could fly through the air, go in to

tran ces,and pen etrate men ’s thoughts . Nevertheless he

lived poorly,and was mean ly clad . Thirty- three of these

are n amed,in cluding five Chin ese patriarchs

,and their

biography is given .

From the foun dation of Chin ese Buddhism a successionof western Buddhist monks an d learn ed m en came toChin a an d un dertook great labours of tran slation and

preaching to propagate their doctrin es . In the The.

fourth cen tury the Chin ese were en tering the Bl

éggfil

s

“

Order by permission of a Chow prin ce,many translated .

pagodas were erected in Loyang,an d con siderable m on

asteries were built in North Chin a . Many of the Buddhist teachers professed to work miracles

,and certain ly

dealt in magic . Chin ese Buddhi st pilgrims visited Indiaand other Buddhist coun tries

,and brought back accoun ts

of marvels they had seen (as , for in stan ce , Fa-hien and

Huen - siang) . Early in the fifth cen tury Kumaraj iv a, anIndian Buddhist

,assisted by eight hun dred priests

,pro

duced a n ew tran slation of the Buddhi st books in toChin ese

,exten ding to three hundred volumes .

After this time the rulers of Chin a became for a timehostile to Buddhism ; b ut this was soon reversed, and

there was much in tercourse between Buddhist‘

prin ces inIn dia an d Chin a . Mon asteries and temples Opposition

multiplied,and magic and won ders as fostered q f

by the books of the Greater Vehicle,overlaid C°nfu°1am8ts'

the origin al faith . At various times Chin ese emperors,

followed by their people,combin ed more or less of

Con fucian ism an d Taoism with Buddhism,and seldom

prohibited any of them . At various periods the Confucian ists sought to put down the Buddhists, to makethe monks and nun s marry

,etc .

,an d decrees were pro

mulgated again st them ; an d sometimes their propertywas confiscated and they were compelled to return tosecular life . Side by side with religious changes

,Hin du

Buddhists in troduced m any improvemen ts in Chin eseorthography

,scien ce

,and literature .

The twen ty- eighth In dian Buddhist patriarch,B odhid

2 2 2 M ODERN B UDDHISM

harma,V i sited China in the sixth cen tury

,and died there .

Bodhidharma He exalted meditation at the expen se of read‘

1ng and book kn owledge,allowing no merit

either to the se or to the building of temples . In his viewtrue merit c on sisted in “purity and en lightenmen t

,depth

and completen ess,and in beingwrapped in thought while

surroun ded by vacan cy and stilln ess .” His influen ce inChina

, where he died, was powerful enough to make hisfollowers a distinct sect of contemplatists , as con trastedwith the ascetics and the ordin ary temple-monks . His sectgradually became the most influen tial ; and it appearsto have distin ctly weaken ed the looking for a future lifeand retribution

,by exalting self-reform as to b e brought

ab out solely by inward con templation . Not long,

afterhis death a monk of Tien -tai

,n amed Chi-kai

,inven ted

a system which combin ed con templation with imageworship

,and it gradually gain ed great popularity, his

books being after some cen turies reckon ed among the

classics of Chinese Buddhism .

The history of Chin ese Buddhism in the middle agespresen ts a con tinual Series of assaul ts by Confucian ists ,altern ate persecutions and support by emperors

,and

frequen t in terferen ce . Certain temples were destroyedand others exalted ; c ertain monasteries and temples w eretran sferred from ( on e kin d of worship to an other

,from

on e sect of Buddhists to , an other ; and all the time theemperors did not o sten sib ly become Buddhists . The

The Mongol Mongol emperors,however

,e specially Kublai

emper°rs~ Khan,became decided Buddhists

,and used the

Chin ese imperial temples for Buddhist worship . Towardsthe end of the thirteen th cen tury a cen sus stated thatthere Were over Buddhis t temples and

monks in China,which implies a very great number of

lay adheren ts . After the fall of the Mongols some

restriction s were gradually imposed on the Buddhists '

Modem an d the Sacred Edict,issued in 1662 , and

discourage still read periodically in public, blames themmen ts“

fer fixing their atten tion on their in dividualmin ds alon e

,and for inven ting baseless tales about future

happin ess and misery . Thus Buddhism is officially dis

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M ODERN B UDDHJS 1V

remain s,in a con siderably materialised form ; b ut image

w 0 1 s11 1p 1s by n o mean s held to be essen tial by in structedBuddhists

,though it is allowed by them for the ign oran t

and weak . B ut added to this worship i s that of a greatnumber of associated and in ferior beings

,making Chin ese

Buddhism at presen t practically a c omplex polytheism .

Its public attitude may be gathered from an accoun t of

the temples and services .Looking so

,uth like so many Chin ese buildings

,the

temples of the Chin ese Buddhists con sist of a series of

halls,the vestibule being guarded by the same

four great kings men tion ed at p . 2 13,carved

in wood,an d dressed and equipped with various symbols

,

such as a sword,an umbrella

,a sn ake

,

'

or some otherobject with a well- defin ed sign ifican ce to Orien tals . Theygive all kin ds of blessings to true Buddhists

,an d with

di aw their favour from kings and n ation s which n eglec tthe truth. Maitreya (Mi- li Fo) also appea1 s in the same

en tran ce-hall ; sometimes even Confucius has an imagehere

,as protector of the Buddhist religion .

The great hall open ing from t he en tran ce -hall con tain sthe images of Buddha

,the Six Bodhi- satvas

,An an da

,an d

Irmageg many sain ts,in various symbolical attitudes

,

111 the halls. Wen shu and Pu-hien often being placed rightand left of Buddha

,while Kwan -

yin is behin d themlooking n orthward . Sometimes Buddha is alon e in fron t

,

and the other three are in a row behin d him . Kwan -

yin

appears in numerous forms in pictures and sculptu1 es ;ln on e he is represen ted by a female figure presen tingan in fan t to mothers pray1ng for children . O ther hallsmay be added to the prin cipal ones

,con tain ing statues

,

sculptured scen es,an d pictures . The la1ge cen tral hall,

according to Dr . Edkin s,is in ten ded to symbolise Buddha

givin g in st1 uction to an assembly of disciples,while the

leadin g idea of the en tran ce-hall i s to show the powerfulprote ction by celestial beings which Buddhists enjoy .

All this is i n agreemen t w ith the n arratives in the“Greater Vehicle .

” There may b e many subordin atechapels

,dedicated to Bodhi- satv as and o ther beings of

Buddhist,Hin du

,and Chin ese mythology . The images

Temples .

KWAN m a 2 2 5

of the Pu- sa_

or Bodhi—satvas stan d when in the presen ceof Buddha , b ut sit when in their own shr in es . Eventhe Taoist images are admitted in to the all- comprehen ding Buddhist temples

,as well as those of

“

celebratedChin ese Buddhi sts .

In North Chin a,especially at Pekin

,it is customary

w hether the images are of brass,iron

,wood

,or clay

,to

make them wi th in tern al organ s as complete R eah sm of

as possible,according to Chin ese n otion s

,which images

are n ot very correct,b ut the heads are always empty .

Surroun ding the abdomin al organ s is a large pi ece of

silk covered with prayers or charms , whil e within it arebags con tain ing small pieces of gold

,silver

,an d pearls

,

and the five chief kin ds of grain ; b ut many of thesevaluables have been stolen from the images .While the more in tellectual Buddhists explain their

temples an d images as purely symbolical,an d their offer

ings,bowings

,etc .

,as expressing reveren tial

reception of Buddha’s teaching ,the common

people regard the images as deities,an d pray to them

for deliveran ce from sickn ess,sufferings

,childlessn ess

,

poverty,etc . Kwan -

yin is very exclusively worshipped,

being commonly kn own as the goddess of mercy,who

hears the cries of m en . This worship is always associatedwith that of Amitabha (O -me- to) , the father of Kwan -

yin ,

and they are believed to dwell in the happy (western )lan d of Sukhavati . Those born in thi s paradise haveon ly unmixed joys

,of which gorgeous description s are

given . This heaven has taken a strong hold of theimagin ation of Chin ese Buddhi sts

,and they will repeat

the n ame “Amita Buddh ” in cessan tly,whil e coun ting

their beads . It i s possible,an d i s strongly held by some

,

that some of the ideas of thi s worship,especially of the

Litany of Kwan -

yin ,were derived from Persian

,Arab

,

an d Jewish sources . It is a wide- Spread belief thatKwan -

yi n ,moved by inn fin ite compassi on

,has promi sed

to become mani fest in all the inn umerable worlds,

save their inhabitants . He also visited all the hells forthi s purpose ; an d detailed accoun ts of hi s visits an d theirben eficial results are given . There are special elaborate

Q

Ewan -

yi n .

2 2 6 M ODE RN B UDDHTSAJ .

services in which Kwan -

yin is worshipped an d invoked ,while at the same time Buddha and the other Bodhisatvas are duly hon oured . On e prayer run s thus : “Maythe all- seeing and all-powerful Kwan -

yin ,in virtue of her

vow,come hither to us as we recite the sen ten ces and

remove from us the three obstacles (of impure thought ,word

,an d deed) . Professor Beal gives the following

tran slation from the Chin ese of the confession or act offaith in Kwan -

yin

All hail, good, compassionate Kwan -

yin"Though I w ere thrown on the Moun tain of Kn ives

,

They should n ot hurt m e ;Though cast in to the lake of fire

,

It should n ot burn m e

Though surrounded b y fam ished gho sts ,They should n ot touch me ;Though exposed to the power of dev ils ,They should n ot reach m e ;

_

Though changed in to a beast,

Yet should I rise to heav en .

All hail,compassionate Kwan -

yin .

In cen se is burn t, flowers and food are offered,and invoca

tion s are repeated again and again to Kwan -

yin an d

Amitabha,with appropriate readings from the sacred

books,some of them in San skrit and un in telligible alike

to priests an d people,but supposed to have a magic effect .

f

The distin ctive worship ofAmitabha is practisedAmmab ha‘ by many

,both in Chin a an d Japan ; they are

called the “pure land

”sect

,who rely on Amitabha to

effect their en tran ce to the bright paradise . The mererepetition of the n ame with con cen trated and un dividedatten tion is believed to en sure paradise ; he is also inv oked b y the form

“Praise to Amita Buddha,

”and the

most extravagan t promises are made to those who rightlyinvoke him ; This is the prevailing form of Buddhistworship in many parts of Chin a

,an d it is very popular

owing to its putting out of sight Nirvan a'

and presen tinga heaven of con scious happin ess an d joy to the believer .At the temple Pi—yun - si

,west of Pekin

,there is a hall

of 500 departed sain ts,arrayed in six parallel

the figures are of clay,fulli siz ed

,and seated . In an other

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2 8 M ODE RN BUDDHJSZW.

court are scen es from the imagin ed future state,all

Halls of 500 modelled in clay , showing the fate both of thesaints good and the evil . These halls are in addition to

the usual elaborate series of halls . Pagodas also form partof this great establishmen t . Similar halls are numerousin the Tien - tai district .Music is much used in Chi n ese Buddhist worship

,the

in strumen ts in cluding drums,small and large bells

,

cymbals,an d various metal forms struck by clappers

which have n o an alogy in western music .

Dr . Edkin s admits that while the populace b elieve inthe extravagan t details of mythology or magic

,the priests

in the serv ices still read the old passages from the Buddhist books which teach the n othingn ess of everything ;so that

,if fully exposed , the most utter con trasts would

b e foun d in any of their services .On e of —the most famous Buddhist region s of Chin a is

Tien - tai a cluster of hills 180 ~miles south- east of Hangcheu . It came in to n ote through Chi-kai

,who

in the sixth cen tury foun ded his school of c on

templativ e Buddhism there , imagin ing its gran d n aturalscen ery to be the residen ce of the great sain ts of Buddhism

,the Arhats or Lohan s ; indeed, he heard them

sing n ear the remarkable rock bridge over a cataract,and

now they are represen ted by five hun dred small stonefigures at the side of the bridge . Here Chi-kai developedan elaborate commen t on an d developmen t of Buddhism

,

which he called “perfected observation.

” He explain edeverything as an embodimen t of Buddha

,subtly getting

rid of all the obj ects of popular belief. He taught hisfollowers various forms of meditation

,which his followers

have main tain ed,while not en tirely con demn ing popular

belief,n or going to the extreme of Buddhist agn ostici sm .

At the presen t day mon asteries are to be foun d five milesapart throughout the Tien - tai hill coun try .

Besides this there are numerous importan t “ schoolsSchools of of Chin ese Buddhism

,n amed fi om promin en t

Chinsse teachers,from whom the presen t heads of

Buddmsm mon asteries claim con tinuous suc c essmn . Theirdoctrin es for the most part do not differ widely fi om on e

M ONAS TE RTE S AND JLIONKS .

an other,b ut great impor tance is attached to minutiae .

The Lin tsi school was foun ded by a teacherwho died in 868

,and had a great reputation

for magical powers,it is n ow very widely spread in

Chin a an d in J apan . It teaches that Buddha i s withinthe believer if he on ly be recogn ised . What i s Buddha ?A min d pure an d at rest. What is the law ? A min dclear an d en lighten ed . What is Tao ? In every placeabsen ce of impedimen ts and pure en lightenmen t . Thesethree are on e .

” Disciplin e is strictly main tain ed bymean s of three blows with the han d or with the can e

,

three successive reproofs,an d the altern ation of speech

with silen ce . We can n ot particularise the other variedschools of Chin ese Buddhism

,b ut they are as numerous

as the prin cipal dissen ting bodies in Englan d .

The mon asteries n eed n o t be particularly described,

after what we have said of Buddhist mon asteries in othercoun tries . They all have a temple or worship Monasteries

hall attached Most of the larger establishmen ts and monksown lan d or other property

,b ut n ot often sufficien t for

all expen ses,whi ch are met by mendican t expedition s

,

the offerings of worshippers , and volun tary presen ts sen tto them . The processi on of monks walks through thestreets to receive alms beating a gong or cymbal at in tervals

,an d often reciting Buddhist formulae . The monks

dress very differen tly from the Chin ese people . In offici

ating they usually wear yellow garmen ts of silk or cotton,

with a wide turn—down collar and huge sleeves ; at othertimes their clothes are mostly of an ashy grey . Theirheads are closely shaven two or three times a mon th

,

and many have on e or more places on the scalp burn twith red-hot coals . Their celi b acy appears to be strict

,

an d they do n ot own any relation ships in the outsideworld

,and show v ery little sociabili ty in their in tercourse

with the people . They spen d much of their time inchan ting their sacred books

,mostly in a form which

represen ts the soun d without the sen se of the Hin du orTib etan origin als . Some mon asteries keep their largebells con stan tly tolled day an d n ight

,so that the soun d

n ever ceases .

The Lin -tsi .

2 30 M ODERN B UDDHJ SM .

A large monastery has num ei ous rooms devoted tospecific uses

,in cluding a lib i ary, study, reception r- ooms

for distinguished guests,an d a place for keeping living

an imals,n ot for food

,b ut as a work of merit. Sometimes

there is a fish-pon d full of fin e fish which must n ot becaught or eaten . Special provision is made for cattle

,

swin e,goats

,fowls

,etc

,many being deposited by lay

people in fulfilmen t of a v ow,together with mon ey or

grain to support them un til thei1 death . The monks professedly refuse all an imal food ,but it is believed that sometran sgress . On the -whole

,the

mass of the Chin ese do not

highly reveren ce the Buddhistmonks

,because they tran sgress

the prin ciples of filial obedienceso deeply rooted among them ;but they are n evertheless muchemployed to conduct privatereligious ceremon ies , whetheron behalf of recen tly deceasedperson s

,those suffering in hells

,

or the sick and infirm . Frequen tly the succession of n o

vi ces in the mon asteries i s

kept up by the purchase of

boys from their paren ts .Within the mon astery ranks

there are frequen tly asceticsBUDDHIS T NUN , WITH CAP AND who for years together have

ROSARY'

no in tercourse with the out

side world,but sit in con stan t silen t meditation in theircells

,receiving their food through a hole in

the door . Usually the bodies of deceased monksare burn ed in a special cremation -building

,the ashes an d

un con sumed bon es being afterwards collected an d de

posited,in an earthen vessel

,in a special room or building

of the mon as tery .

There are numerous Buddhist nunn eries in Chin a,under

the especial patron age of Kwan -

yin ,and while many join

Ascetics .

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32 M ODERN B UDDHIS M .

In depen den t of its professors,Buddhism has exerted

a great influen ce in tempering the character of Chin ese

Influence of religion . The discoun ten an cing of samifices,

Buddhism in the ten dern ess to an imal life,the con ceptiori

Ch1naof a spiritual aim in religion

,an d of self dis

c iplin e as of supreme importan ce , have n ot been withoutfar- reaching effect on the Chin ese . The example of

Buddha as b en eficen tly desirous of being born in theworld to save i t

,his patien ce and self- sacrific e in his

successive lives,his teaching of the n oble path an d the

desirability of freedom from the fetters of this life haveall ten ded to elevate the popular faiths . A more doubtfu linfluen ce of Buddhism has been the popularisation of

beliefs in material hells . A great variety of tortures an dcircumstan ces of pun ishmen t are described

,and the

demon s are represen ted as delighting i n human sufferin gs .On the on e han d i t i s alleged that the beliefs on thewhole have ten ded to discourage the crimes that are saidto b e visited with such pun ishmen ts

,on the other

,that

the popular min d is thereby familiarised with picturesand description s of horrible cruelties .The toleran ce in culcated by Buddhism

,too

,has had

its effect in spreading a con siderable in differen ce toreligion in Chin a

,While on the other han d it has favoured

its own existen ce But the exten t of mutual con cessionan d accommodation to be foun d among the Chin ese inreligious as Well as other matters is a very pleasing feature

,

when it does not sign ify lifelessn ess or mere , in differen ce .

The Buddhists too deserv e credit,for their represen tation s

of B uddhas an d Bodhi- satvas are pre- emin en tly merciful,

although their objection to suffering as an evil loses sight ofits medical an d ben eficial influen ce . Buddhism

,too

,has in

Chin a acquired more regard for filial duty than elsewhere .

We may also n ote how greatly Buddhism has con

tributed to the artistic and literary developmen t of theChin ese . The pagoda form is theirs especially . It isderived from the In dian tope or dagoba ; the base orplatform sign ifies the earth

,the semicircular building

covering it the air,an d the railing above

,the heaven

,

the spire and umbrellas above have been expan ded in to

TEA/[IDLE OF THE H UNDRED PA GODA S .

2 34 M ODERN BUDDHISM .

successive storeys or platforms,represen ting the successive

worlds above the heaven s . In many cases,however

,the

Chin ese pagodas have no religiou s sign ifican ce,and on ly

relate to the popular geoman cy by which luck is determin ed . Those which con tain Buddhist relics are alwaysconn ected with mon asteries . Some are of brick

,others

of porcelain,others of cast iron , Many are n ow falling

to ruin,and few are n ow built . Flower cultivation is

an other artistic feature in China and Japan which hasa conn ection with the Buddhist flower offerings ; manybeautiful flowers are grown in the temple and mon asterygarden s for use as offerings an d in decoration s ;We must n ot con clude this accoun t of Chin ese Buddhi sm

without calling atten tion to an in teresting sect of reformedThe do Buddhists who have Spread con siderably sin ce

nothing sect the beginn ing of the sixteen th cen tury in the

lower ranks of the Chin ese,kn own as the Wu-wei-kian

,

or “Do-n othing sect . They Oppose all image-worship,

but believe in Buddha without worshipping him . Theymeet in plain buildings with n o images

,and con tain ing

only an ordin ary Chin ese tablet dedicated to heaven,

earth,king

,paren ts and teachers

,as sign ifying the fit

obj ects for r everen ce . They enjoin the cultivation of

virtue by meditation alon e,an d inward reveren ce for the

all-pervading Buddha,who is within man and in all

nature . Their foun der,Lo‘

Hweii

-n eng took the title Lotsu (the patriarch Lo) ; on the ann iversari es of his birthand death

,the n ew year

,and in the middle of the eighth

mon th,they

"meet to drink tea an d eat bread together.They are strict vegetarian s

,believ ing strongly in metem

psychosis and the con sequen t sin o f taking an imal life .

They have n o order of monks or of priests . Matter theyregard as perishable

,and believe that at the en d of the

world they wil l be taken to heaven by Kin -mu,the

golden mother,whom they regard as the mother of the

soul . She is in deed more an obj ect of worship , by thissect than Buddha

,being regarded as a p

’

rotectress fromcalamities an d sickn ess

,an d from the miseries of the

un seen w orld . So far have the Taoist n otion s invadedeven this pure form of Buddhism .

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2 36“

M ODERN B UDDHISM .

JAPANESE B UDDEISM

Buddhism foun d its way to Japan in the sixth cen turyA .D . both from Chin a an d from Corea , but gain ed n o greatinfluen ce un til the n in th

,when the priest Kukai

,or Kobo

Daishi,showed how to adapt Shin toism to Buddhi sm by

asserting that the Shin to deities were tran smigration s ofthe Bud

b

dhistic on es . Thus explain ed,Buddhism gain ed

great ascen den cy . In the seven teen th cen tury a philo-ysophical awaken ing took place

,un der which every m an

was taught to long for perfection ,to believe in successive

tran smigration s of souls,an d to look forward to the perfect

reward of absorption in to Buddha . A very great numberof Buddhist shrin es an d temples exist

,vastly more orn ate

andwealthy than those of the Shin to,con tain ing images

of extraordin ary variety for adoration,supporting till

lately a numerous pries thood,who took care to attract

the people in every possible way,by spectacles

,games

,

lotteries,an d even shooting galleries . The recen t rev olu

tion,however

,has been atten ded with a great spoliation

of Buddhism,suppression of temples and -mon asteries

,

meltin g of bells for coin age,etc . ; and the religion Dow

on ly exists on sufferan ce,and has already put forth re

n ewed efforts to gain spiritual influen ce over the people .

There are num erous sects,correspon ding in the main

to those of Chin a,some being con templative

,others

The Shin mystic,others taking charge of the popular

Shm ceremon ies . The Shin shin especially reveren ceAmitabha as being willing and able to save those whobelieve in him . No prayers for happin ess in the presen tlife are made by them

,an d they t each that morality is

of equal importan ce with faith . They have many of thefin est temples in Japan

,an d are remarkable for their

active mission ary work in Chin a and Corea,an d for the

high stan dard of education they main tain. The priestsare allowed to marry an d to eat meat . The creed of thesect

,as stated by on e of its prin cipal

'

teachers,is as

Rejecting all religious austerities an d other action,

giving up all idea of s elf-power,we rely upon Amita

THE SHIN -SHIN .

“

2 37

Buddha with the whole heart for our‘

salvation in thefuture life

,which is the most importan t thing

,believing

that at the momen t of putting our faith in Amita Buddhaour salv ation i s settled . From that momen t invocationof his name is observed as an expression of gratitudean d thankfuln ess for Buddha ’s mercy . Moreover

,being

thankful for the reception of this doctrin e from thefoun der an d succeeding chief priests whose teachingswere so ben evolen t

,an d as welcome as light in a dark

n ight,we m ust also keep the laws which are fixed for

duty duri ng our whole life .

J AIN EMBLEMS .

CHAPTER X.

3151111113111.Jainism and Buddhism—Mahavira—Jain b eliefs—Temp1es at Palitana

Mount Ab u—Parasnath—The Yatis.

THE J ain s are at the presen t ,

day an importan t body"

of religion ists in In dia,more for their wealth an d

influen ce than their numbers . It is said that half themercan tile tran saction s of In dia pass through their handsas merchan ts an d bankers

,largely in the n orth an d

west of India,and in smaller numbers throughout the

Jainism and southern pen in sula . Till comparatively re

Buddhism_

cen tly they were believed to be quitmodern sect of Hin dus

,at any rate n ot much more

than a thousan d years old . But the careful researchesof several emin en t scholars have led them to the belief

23s

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a younger son of Siddhartha,a Khsatriya n ob le or

chief of Kun dagramma,n o t far from Vesali

,

already men tion ed in our accoun t of Buddhism,

an d the wife of Siddhartha,was sister of the king of

Vesali,and related to the king of Magadha. At the age

of twen ty- eight Mahavira became an ascetic,an d spen t

twelve years in‘

self-mortification . After that period hebecame

,

recogn ised as a prophet and sain t ; or Tirthankara(mean ing con queror or leader of a school of thought),and spen t the remain ing thirty years of his life in teaching an d in organ ising his order of ascetics

,mostly within

the kingdom of Magadha, but also travelling to Sravastiand the foot of the Himalayas . Mahavira is referred toin the Buddhist books un der his well-kn own n ame Nataputta

,as the head of the rival sect of Nigan thas, or

Jain s,an d several con temporaries are referred to in the

books of both religion s . We may put down Mahavira ’sdate as about the fifth and sixth cen turies B .C .

,b ut the

earliest‘

ex tan t works of the Jain s do n ot go beyon d thethird cen tury, an d were not reduced to writing til l thefifth or sixth cen tury AD It i s very doubtful how far

Mahavira is in debted~

to Parsva,his predecessor

,

“

according to the Kalpa Sutra , by about two cen turies . The

lives of the earlier Jain s,like those of the predecessors

of Gautama . are altogether mythical . Adinath is theearliest of

”

them .

The life of Mahavira,as related in the Kalpa

'

Sutra,

con tain s but few details,an d is

*

v ery far from'

hav ing thein terest of that of‘h is great con temporary . He “is declaredto have torn out his hair on en tering ‘

the ascetic life,to

have gon e n aked for e leven years,and to have aban don ed

all care of his body . All perfection s of circumspect con

duct and self- restrain t are attributed to him . He at lastreached the highest kn owledge

,un obstructed and full

,so

as to become omn iscien t . At his death he became aBuddha

,a Mukta (a lib erated soul), putting an end to

all misery,

fin ally liberated,freed from all pain s .

“Mahavira,

”says Professor Jacobi

,

“was of the ordin aryclass of religious m en in In dia . He may be allowed atalen t for religious matters

,but he possessed

‘

n ot the

Mahavira

j A [N BELIEFS . 2 4 1

gen ius which Buddha un doubtedly had . The Buddha’sphilosophy forms a system based on a few fun damen talideas

,whilst that of Mahavira scarcely forms a system

,

b ut is merely'

a sum of opin ion s on various subjects .

”

The matter of the Jain works yet tran slat ed is so in feriorto that of the Buddhist scriptures that we shall n ot makeany extracts from them .

The Jain s believe in a Nirvan a,con sisting in the

delivery of the soul from the n ecessity for tran smigration ; an d they do n ot look for an ab sorption

Jof the soul in to the un iversal Soul . In factthey do n ot teach anythin g about a supreme deity .

Right perception,clear kn owledge

,followed by super

n atural kn owledge,leading to omn iscien ce

,were the

stages of progress to Nirvan a . The space occupied byeach of the perfected on es who have attain ed Nirvan ais stated to be boun dless

,in creasing according to their

desire . Their parts are said to be innumerable,an d

there is n o return ing again to a worldly state,and n o

in terrupti on to that bliss . Their term of exi sten ce isinfin ite

,and they exercise themselves in the highest

philosophy . Believers must also practise liberality,

gen tlen ess,piety

,and sorrow for faults

,an d kin dn ess

to an imals and even to plan ts . This last the Jain sexhibit in the presen t day by an extreme unwillingn essto injure livin g creatures . They believe all an imals and

plan ts (and even the smallest particles of the elemen ts)have souls

,an d they spen d much mon ey in main tain ing

hospitals for sick an imals . They will n ot eat in the openair during rain or after dark

,for fear of swallowing a

fly or in sect ; they strain water three times before drinki ng it , an d will n ot walk again st the win d for fear thatit should blow in sects in to the mouth . The strict devoteescarry a brush to sweep in sects out of the way when theysit down

,an d a mouth- cloth to cover the mouth when

they are engaged in prayer . In strictn ess the Jain sdisregard Vedas

,gods

,an d caste ; b ut practically they

yield con siderably to caste regulation s,they pay some

devotion to many “

of the Hindu deities an d have anumerous list of good and bad spirits of their own

,and

R

Jain b eliefs.

2 42 j ATNISM .

they appeal to the Vedas as of con siderable authoritywhen they support their V i ews . Now-a-days the peouliarity of n akedn ess is on ly retain ed by the asceticsamong the D igambaras (sky- clad on es ), an d then on lyat meal- times . The Svetambaras

,the other sect of the

Jain s,are white-robed an d completely clad . They have

n o sacrifices,an d practise a strict morality . Many of

their beli efs are common to Brahman an d Buddhistphilosophies

,such as that re -births are determin ed by

c on duct in previous states of existen ce .

The Jain s possess some of the most remarkable placesof pilgrimage in In dia

,situated in the midst cf most

Temples at lovely moun tain scen ery. At Palitan a in KathPal itana iawar

,is the t emple covered hill of Satrunjaya,

the most sacred of the pilgrim- resorts of the Ja in s and

Jain s from all parts of In dia desire to erect templesupon it . Many of them are very small buildings on lyabout three feet square

,covering impression s of the soles

of‘

two feet marked with Jain emblems,and sacred to

Mahavira . The larger temples have con sidera b le marblehalls with column s and towers

,an d plen ty

‘

of open ings ,un like Hin du temples the marble floors have “beautifultesselated pattern s . In the shrin e

,on a pedestal

,are

large figures of Mahavira,sitting with feet crossed in

fron t,like those of Buddha . Often on the brow an d

breast are five brillian ts,an d gold plates adorn many

parts of the body . The eyes are of silver overlaid withp i eces of grass

,and proj ecti ng very far

,so as to stare

very promin en tly . The larger temples,says Fergusson

History of In dian are situated in take,

or separate en closures,surroun ded by high fortified walls ;

the smaller on es lin e the silen t streets . A few zyatz’

s,or

priests,sleep in the temples

,an d perfoi m the daily

servi ces,an d a few atten dan ts are con stan tly there to

keep the place clean or to feed the sacred pigeon s , whoare the sole den izen s of the spot ; b ut there are n o

human habitation s,properly so called

,within the walls .

The pilgrim or the stranger ascen ds in the morn ing ,and return s when he has performed hi s devo tion s orsatisfied his curiosity . He must not eat

,or at least must

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2 44 j A JNJ SM

of pilgrimage , an d has been termed the Olympus of

In dia . There are five temples,two of which

,

according to Fergusson (“History of In dian

are un rivalled for certain qualities byany temples in In dia . They are built wholly of whitemarble

,an d the more modern of the two was built

(between 1197—1247 ) by the same brothers who erected atriple temple at Girnar ; for minute delicacy of carvingan d beauty of detail it stands almost un rivalled . A

simpler yet very elaborate on e,erected in the eleven th

cen tury,is a typical example of larger Jain temples ; it

has a cen tral hall termin atin g in a pyramidal spire-likeroof

,con tain ing a cross- legged seated figure of the deified

sain t worshipped,who in this case is Parsva

,the prede

cessor of Mahavira . There is also a large portico surmoun ted by a dome

,an d the whole is en closed in a large

courtyard,surroun ded by a double colonn ade of pillars

formin g f porticos to a range of fifty-fiv e cells

,as in

Buddhi st viharas, but each‘

o ccupied by a facsimile of

the cen tral image,an d over the door of each are sculp

tured scen es from the sain t’s life . In some ‘Jain temples

the image of Mahavira or other sain ts is repeated in an

iden tical form hun dreds of times,each with cells or

n iches . Remarkable skill and ingenuity have been displayed in the decoration of the column s and other partsof the Jain temples .Parasnath, in Bengal , is the eastern metropolis of the

Jain s,having been the supposed scen e of the en tran cein to Nirvan a of ten of their twen ty-four deifiedsain ts . In on e view of Parasn ath there are to

be seen three tiers of temples rising on e above an other,

in dazzling white ston e,with fifteen shin ing domes

,each

with bright brass pinn acles . In style these temples differfrom those in the West or South

,an d are partly derived

from Hin du temples and partly from Mahometan mosques .There are n o priests to perform ceremon ies for thepilgrims ; each performs his devotion according to hisown views . They have to pay toll to the priestly orderbefore en terin g

,an d to leave some con tribution to the

repairs of the buildings . Ex treme cleanlin ess b eing 0 11 6“

Mount Ab u.

Parasnath.

THE YA TJS . 2-

45

of the Jain pi in ciples , it is carried out perfectly in thetemples

,producing an effect of surpassing beauty.

“On

entering the cen tre an d holy chamb er,

” says on e of the

few European f

v isitors who have gain ed admission,

“ itis impossible to avoid being impressed with the Simplebeauty of the place . The pavem en t is composed of fin e

slabs of blue-vein ed marble ; an d on a white marblepedimen t

,opposite to the en tran ce

,five very beautiful

images of the Jain sain ts sit in digni ty waitin g for theprayers of their disciples

,which are ren dered more deep

ton ed by the echoing influen ce of the dome .

” Pilgrimsvisit every shrin e in the holy place

,a work of extreme

labour,owing to the number of peaks and the pilgrimage

is completed by a circu it roun d the base of the group of

hill s,a distan ce of something like thirty mil es .

The yatis , or ascetics , among the Jain s have n o absoluterule as to worship

,being on ly devoted to meditation an d

abstraction from worldly affairs but they oftenread the Jain scriptures in the temples

,while

the min istran ts,atten dan ts

,etc .

,in the temples are Brah

man s . The Jain s fast and specially devote themselvesto religious duties during a part of the rainy season (theBuddhist Vassa) . At its commen cemen t they are accustom ed to con fess their sin s to an ascetic an d obtainabsolution for them . The Svetambaras are the broaderof the two sects

,taking their meals clothed and decorating

their images,an d allowing that women may attain

Nirvan a,which the Digambaras deny .

The yatis.

[On J ain ism see Sacred B ooks of the East ,”

v o l. x x ii . ;“ Imperial

Gaz etteer of India ;“ Statistical Accoun t of B engal ; En cyclop edia

Britann ica,

” Art. Jain .]

CHAPTER XI.

%ornastrr anti the Zkenhzghesta.

The Avesta—Zend and Pahlavi—The Magi of the Bib le—The Greeks and theMagi—Modern study b y Europeans

—Zoroaster—A real personage—His

life in Eastern Iran—His date—Mythical developments—Marvels and

miracles—Contrary opinions—The doctrines of Zoroaster —Ormuz d and

Ahriman—Dualism—Importance attached to thoughts—Relation to earlyAryan religion —Comparison with

‘ Vedic religion—Ahura—Zoroaster and '

the settled agriculturists—Attrib utes of Ormuzd—The name of Ormuzd—Lofty conception of the Deity

—The Amasha-Spentas—The Yazatas or

spiritual genii—Mithra—Vayu—Sraosha—The soul of the b ull—The

powers of evil—Ahriman—The daevas and druj—The Yatus, Drvants ,etc.—Zoroaster magnifi ed—The universal conflict—The Fravashis—Im

mortality—Future rewards and punishments—The final dissolution and

renovation.

HE Zen d-Avesta 1 is the popular n ame of the greatreligious book or collection of books of the Parsees

,

a wealthy and influen tial body of In dian residen ts (numbering over 70

,000) whose an cestral home was

Persia,but who after the seven th century

,

when the Persiaris were overthrown by the Mohametans,

took refuge in Western In dia and the pen insula ofGuzerat .On ly -

a few thousan d descen dan ts of the old people stillkeep up the an cestral worship in Persia itself

,in Yezd

and its n eighbourhood . Properly speakin g,the old col

lection of books i s the Avesta, Zen d (or“interpretation

b eing the n ame of the tran slation and commen tary on it

The Avestta.

1 See “ Sacred B ooks of the East,”vols . iv. , v .,

x vn i . , x x 111 . , x xiv . ,

xxxi. En cyclopaedia B ritann ica, n inth ed., articles“ Persia,

” Pahlavi ,”

Parsees ,” Zend-Av esta,

” Zoroaster .

” Ave sta,

” tran slated with com

mentary by Prof. de Harlez , second ed. Paris , 1881 .

“ Civilisation of the

Eastern Iran ians ,"b yProf. Geiger, tran sl

London : HenryFrowde , 1886. (G )

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2 48 ZOR OA S TER AND THE ZEND -A VE S TA .

and other philosophers wrote about the Pe rsian religionThe Greeks in lost books . The Magi appear to have recoma

iid the men ded the destruction of the Greek templesa’gl ’ in Xerxes’ invasion .

‘

After the Greek con questof Persia the n ame of the Magi represen ted a hatedsystem of divin ation

,an d the religion of a conquered foe .

Both Plato an d Xen ophon,however

,speak of the Magi

with respect . Philo,the great Alexan drian philosopher

describes them as men who gave themselves to theworship of n ature

,and the con templation of the Divin e

perfection s,and as being worthy to be the coun sellors

of kings . Much literature was put forth in Greece asbeing the oracles of Zoroaster

,but having very fain t

traces of his sys tem . Throughout the middle ages,how

ever,n o real kn owledge of the an cien t Persian religion

exis ted in Europe ; Gradually after the Ren aissan ce theold kn owledge was re- collected and travellers in Persiaan d In di a

'

gathered the beliefs of the Parsees an d describedModem study their practices . Thomas Hyde

,an Oxford

b y Eu mpeans pr,

ofessor in 1700 published the first accuratedescription of modern Parseeism ; and in 1728 RichardCob b e brought to Englan d a copy of the Vendidad

,which

was hung up by an iron chain in the Bodleian library,a

treasure which n obody could read . More than thirtyyears later, Dupe

’

rron,a young Fren chman

,after years

of persuasion an d investigation,obtain ed from the Parsees

of Surat both their books an d the mean s of tran slatingthem

,an d in 1764 brought to Paris the whole of the

Zen d Avesta ; in 1771 he published the first Europeantran slation . But it was loudly asserted that the Avestawas a forgery an d a late con cocti on ; an d it was n ot tillthe Pahlavi i n scription s of the first Sassan ian emperorshad been deciphered by De Sacy

,an d they in turn led

to the reading of the Persian cun eiform in scription s byBurn ouf

,Lassen

,an d Rawlin son

,that it was proved

beyon d dout that the Avesta was written ih'

a stillmore an cien t language . Zend

,as it is usually called

,is

apparen tly derived from a common source with San skrit ;an d its grammatical forms remin d on e of Greek an d Latinas well as of the language of the -Vedas .

2 49

So much scepticism has been displayed as to the Avestathat it is scarcely surprisin g to fin d that many havedoubted the existen ce of any person correspon ding toZoroaster or Zarathushtra (in modern Persian ,

Zardusht) ,although they

, might In som e cases admit that Zoroasterhe was a mythological person age developed a real

out of some m an . But it requires very cogen t personage ‘

proof to upset the un animous voice of classical an tiquity,

whi ch speaks of Zoroaster as a real person an d the founder of the Persian religion . The period when he livedand the details of hi s life must be admitted to be doubtful ;and his n ame is n ot men tion ed in any cun eiform in scription yet deciphered . No doubt the Zoroaster of the laterparts of the Avesta an d of the Zen d is largely mythi cal

,

an d of these myths we must later give some accoun t .But the Zoroaster of the gathas or hymn s con tain ed inthe Yasn a appeal s as a m an

,trusting i n the Divin e Being

whom he worships,facing fierce opposition from without

,

crippled at times . by the fain theartedn ess of his supporters

,sometimes suffering from inward doubts an d

struggles,an d again exul ting in secure confiden ce . And

it i s less marvellous to believe in these sen timen ts ashaving proceeded from a man who was the foun der of areligion than to beli eve they were in ven ted long afterwards in the successful days of the religion

,when it was

beginn ing to decay . But,as in the case of Buddha an d

also of the early hi story of Buddha,these old Aryan s

had n o n otion of wri ting biographies . Al l we havefrom them i s in ciden tal information

,whi ch may be even

more reliable,when sifted

,than details professing to be

b iographical would have been in that age .

Although his birthplace i s un certain,Zoroaster ’s active

life an d teaching may safely be placed in E astern Iran,

possibly i n Bactria . The latel parts of the Avesta describ e him as teaching during the reign of 5 5 11mVishtaspa, the same word as i s rendered Hys Eastern Iran

taspes by the Greeks ; b ut there i s reason to believe thisking belonged to a much earlier period than Hystaspes ,

2 50 ZOR OA S TER AND THE ZEND-A VE S TA .

the father of Darius . This king was eviden tly the patronand frien d of the great religious teacher ; an d his influen ce greatly con tributed to Zoroaster ’s success . Twobrothers

,Frashaoshtra and Jamaspa, the latter a min ister

of the king,were among Zoroaster ’s promin en t supporters ;

in deed he married their sister Hv ov i . Like some otherreligious leaders

,Zoroaster derived much aid from his

relatives an d their followers and he appears to have hada family of son s an d daughters . The Avesta does n o tspeak of his death ; but in the late Shah-Nama

,or book

of Turan ian kings (18th cen tury), it is related that hewas murdered at the altar in the storming of Balk bythe Turan ian conquerors . Almost the on ly mean s thatwe have of indicating Zoroaster’s date is the fact that

when Cyrus reign ed,in the 6th cen tury B .C .

,

the Magian religion was firmly e stablished inWestern Iran . Variou s conj ectures assign him datesbetween an d 1400

Turn ing n ow to the View of Zoroaster given by thelater parts of the Avesta

,it is easy to see that he became

invested with marvellous,powers

,n othing less than super

Mythicaln atural

,and was in fact m ade part of the

dev elop Magian mythology . He is described as smitingments' fien ds chiefly with his prayers

,driving away

Ahr iman,

the evil spirit with huge ston es which he hadre ceived from Ormuzd

,the supreme and good god . At

his birth the floods an d trees rejoiced . Ormuzd is evenrepresen ted as sacrificing to a spring

,and praying that

Zoroaster may be brought to think and Speak an d doaccording to his law . Zoroaster in fact becomes thesupporter of Ormuzd

,an d driv es away Ahriman an d the

fien ds that try to kill him . He is a godlike champion,

who kills the powers of evil with the word of truth orthe sacred spell .

(

At some far-off period a posthumousson will be b orn to him who will come from the regionof the dawn to free the world from death and decay

,

and un der his rule the dead will rise and immortalitycommen ce .

Still later,in the Bun dahish we have more details

and marvels about Zoroaster,and from it a legendary

His date.

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2 52 ZOR OA S TER AND THE ZEND-A VE S TA .

man,that pre - existen t mythic elemen ts may have gathered

aroun d the name of a man,born on earth

,an d b y

- an d-b ysurroun ded the human face with the aureole of a god

,

may of course be main tain ed,but on ly on condition that

on e may distin ctly express what was the real work of

Zoroaster . That he raised a n ew religion again st theVedic religion

,an d cast down in to hell the gods of

older days can n o longer be main tain ed,sin ce the gods

,

the ideas,and the worship of Mazdeism Zoroastrian

ism) are shown to eman ate directly from the old religion ,

and have n othing more of a reaction again st it than Zen dhas again st San skrit .” (Darmesteter

,S .E .

,vol . iv.)

THE D OCTRINES OF ZOR OASTER .

_ The m ost special feature of Zoroaster’s teaching is the

dualistic prin ciple,according to which Ahura Mazda

(Ormuzd), the good spirit , is con stan tly an tagon ised byOrmuz d and Angra Mainyu (Ahriman ) , the evil spirit, whoAhriman . is the origin ator of everythin g evil . The latteris to b e ultimately expelled from the world

,an d man

mu st take an active part in the struggle,his con duct

being regulated by the code revealed to Zoroaster byOrmuzd . Ormuzd and

"

Ahriman are believed to havebeen co - existen t

,an d Opposed in the earliest period kn own

to the Gathas ; but the ultimate triumph of

Ormuzd in dicates essen tial if laten t in feriorityin Ahriman . It must n ot be taken that other spiritswere n ot believed in by Zoroaster ; but as far as on e can

judge,his special teachin g relates to the supremacy and

greatn ess of Ormuzd and his fin al victory .

As regards con duct in this world,Zoroaster enforces

the doctrin e that n o on e can occupy a position of in

differen ce ; he must be either on the side of good or of

Importanceevil . The on ly proper course was to choose

attached the good , an d to follow i t in thought,word

,13° thoughts°

and deed . This was ann oun ced clearly in thefirst gatha ;

“

and we must con cede to Zoroaster the greatmerit of seeing the importan ce of the t houghts

,and

tracing evil to that source . When we r emember how

Dualism.

AH URA S . 2 53

few of the hymn s of the Rig-Veda refer to sin or itsexpiation

,an d how slight are the traces of feelings of

guilt,an d the n ecessity for obtaining forgiven ess for it

from the Deity,it will be seen that the Avesta con tain s

distin ctly an advan ced teachin g .

Whatever may have been Zoroaster ’s con tribution to

the religious progress of his race,such a religion as his

could on ly become accepted where there was already alarge basis of positive belief

,even if that b elief

R elation towere erron eous ; and as there can be n o doubt early Aryanthat the Iran ian s were derived from the same religion

stock as the Aryan Hin dus,we must compare their early

religion with the features foun d existing in the Avesta,

in default of any documen t recording what was the stateof belief upon which Zoroaster began to work . And thistudy leads to most in teresting resu lts .The gen eral n ame for a god in the earlier portion s of

the Rig-Veda is deva (bright) ; in the Avesta the evilSpirits are called daeva

,essen tially the same word ; while

in the later Rig-Veda the n ame mean s exclusively agood spirit

,a b en efi c en t god . In con trast to this

,we

find the use of an altern ative n ame to dam in the earlierparts of the Rig-Veda n amely asum . This is the sameword as ahum in the Avesta

,forming part of Comparison

the n ame Ormuzd (Ahura Mazda) an d limited with Vedicto a good sen se . Yet in the later Rig—Veda rehgmn '

an d in Brahman ism the same n ame is exclusively appliedto evil spirits . We have n ot space to trace fully howthis divergen ce was con comitan t in In dia with the deposition of Varun a from the supreme place among the

gods and the rise of In dra ; b ut it may be in ferred fromthe Avesta that in Zoroaster ’s time the people of Iranwere divided between two distin ct an d con trasted formsof belief— the wilder un settled n om ads who believed inthe devas

,the

.original spirits of the Ayran M um s.

race,an d who i ll-treated an d sacrificed cattle ;

while the more settled people believed in the ab uras ; thepatron s of cattle

,and elevated the care of cattle in to a

sacred fun ction .

Zoroaster therefore appeared as a champion of the

54 ZOR OA S TER AND THE ZEND-A VE S TA .

belief of the settled peoples,an d added the epithet

Mazda,the wise

,to the n ame of the chief god whom

Zoroaster andthey already believed in . He iden tified the

the settled old devas,sti ll beli eved in by the n omads

,with

agrl culturl sts ‘

powers of evil,false gods

,devils . These

,he

taught,were all differen t man ifestation s or helpers of

a predomin an t evil prin ciple,often called Druj

,or de

c eption ,an d less frequen tly Angra Mainyu ,

or Ahriman .

This is ‘

b ut a con cen tration an d developmen t of the earlyAryan belief in a conflict between the powers of n ature

,

some ben efiting an d others injuring mankin d .

The frequen t b rief address to Ormuzd in the Vendidadis the most blissful Spirit

,creator

,

of the material world,

Attrib utes of thou Holy On e ,” or more fully

,

“ I ven erateOrmuzd the Creator

,Ahura Mazda

,the brillian t

,radian t

,

greatest,best

,most beautiful

,mightiest

,wisest

,best

formed,mOst exalted through holin ess

,giving profusely

,

gran tin g m uch bliss,who created us

,who prepares us

,

who maintain s us,the most blissful spirit .” Dr . Geiger

lays stress on the spiritual view which is given of

Ormuzd,and says that he is n ot represen ted as havin g

any visib le form,except where the

“

sun (Mithra) isspoken of as the body and the eye of Mazda . An thro

pom orphism is rare as applied to the Supreme Beingin the Avesta : an d Geiger looks upon all the passages assymbolical

,which speak of wives an d relatives of Ormuzd .

But we cann ot be blin d to the extreme probability thatsuch relation ships would be looked upon as real by thegen eral mass of the people

,however defin itely the leaders

may have regarded them as symbolical .Great importan ce is eviden tly attached to the n ame

of Ormuzd,an d it is in teresting to compare it with the

“n ame ” of Jehovah as treated in the Old Testamen t ScripThe name of tures , and the 99 n ames of Allah ih

'

the Koran .

Ormuzd These n ames,as given in the Ormuzd Yast

,

are “the On e of whom question s are asked , the Herdgiver

,the Strong On e

,Perfect Holin ess, Creator of all

good things,Un derstan din g

,Kn owledge

,Well-being

,and

the Producer of well-being,Ahura (the Lord), the most

B en eficen t,He in whom there is no harm

,the Uh ~

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2 56' ZOR OA S TER AND THE ZEND-A VE S TA .

There have n ot been wan ting t hose who see in theresemblan ces b etween this con ception of the supremeDeity an d that of the Jews a proof that the on e wasderived from the other ; but the View that they aredistin ct an d un related fin ds warm advocacy . Thu s Dr .Geiger says : “In this sublime con ception of the Avesta

,

Ahura Mazda un doubtedly stan ds far above the deitiesof the Vedic pan theon . On ly the Jehovah of the an cien t

LoftyJews may be compared to him . But how

conceptien crever obvious the similarity between the Godthe Del ty'

of Israel and the god of the Mazdean s may be,

still I reject en tirely the assumption that the Avestapeople have borrowed from the Jews . Upon the Iran iansoil a n arrowly- confin ed n ation

“

has,in depen den tly an d

of itself,attain ed that high con ception of God

, ”

which,

with the exception of the Jews,w as n ever attain ed by

any Aryan ,Semitic

,or Turan ian tribe .

”

(G .) To an otherstuden t

, _Professor G eldn er,Ormuzd appears as the ideal

ised figure of an orien tal kin g . To Professor Darmesteter

he is the developed idea of the old Aryan Heaven -God,

”

and many features betray his former sky n ature . Thus“ he is white

,bright

,seen afar

,an d his body is

‘ thegreatest and fairest of all bodies ; he has the sun for hiseye

,the rivers above for hi s spouses

,the fire of lightn ing

for his son ; he wears the heaven as a star- Spangled garmen t he dwells in the infin ite lumin ous space .

The sevenfold arrangemen t of the Vedic gods whichwas sometimes made,

an d from which were developedthe twelve adityas

,was seen also in the Iran ian religion

,

The Ameehea nd it is a question whether it did n ot exist810611 193 3 . very early

,Ormuzd becoming the most pro

min en t an d finally the supreme . In some parts of theAvesta men tion is made of seven Am esha-Spen tas (theblissful immortals) , of whom Ahura Mazda is chief. The

names of the others are (1 ) Vohu-man o . the good min d,

(2) Asha-v ahishta, the best holin ess , (8) Khshathra-varya'

,

the desirable sovereign ty , (4) Spen ta-Armati, moderatethinking an d humble sen se

, (5) Harvatat,well-being

,

happin ess,health

, (6) Amertal,long life

,immortality .

The abstract mean ings _

of these names render it difficult

THE A lWE SHA -SPE IVTA S . 2 57

to understand them,b ut there is n o doubt that they are

invoke d in the Avesta as real beings who can an swerprayel . W e find them very defin itely associated withparticular fun ction s : Vohu-man o pl otects herds , Asha isthe gen ius of fire

,Khshathra has the care of metals

,

Spen ta-Armati is the guardian of the earth,while the

last two protect the waters an d plan ts . W e may hereindicate with some reserve Geiger ’s explan ation of theabstract mean ing of some of the Am e sha-Spen tas , asconn ected with these practical fun ction s . Vohu -man o

,

the good min d,is the protector of herds because the

people who accepted the Zoroastrian doctrin e,an d con

sequen tly were of good min d,were the cattle-rearers

,

as Opposed to the n omads . Vohu-man o came also to beregarded as the guardian of all living beings . The conn ection of Asha

,purity

,with fire

,is eviden t

,fire being

the symbol of purity . Armati (the Vedic goddess Ara

mati) is the protector of the earth, regarded as“ the

humble suffering on e which bears all,n ourishes all

,and

sustain s all . In the Rig-Veda Aram ati is devotion,or

the gen ius of devotion . By the In dian commen tatorSayan a

,Armati is regarded as wisdom

,b ut he also de

fin e s the same word twi ce as the ‘ earth .

’ Harvatat,

health,is the master of water

,for the waters dispen se

health . Am ertal,long life an d immortality

,is the gen ius

of plan ts,which dispel sickn ess an d death

,especially the

Haoma (Indian Soma) plan t , which gives health and longkeeps up the v ital p o .wers The white Haoma givesimmortality . Fire i s spoken of as the son of Ormuzd

,

and Armati as his daughte l . In on e place (Yast xix .)we fin d all invoked as son s of Ormuzd : “ I invoke theglory of the Am esha-Spen tas , who all seven have on e

an d the same thinkin g,on e an d the same doing

,on e an d

the same father an d lord,Ahura Mazda .

”

An other sub ject of great in terest is the part playedby the gasatas, sometimes characterised as angels orspiritual gen ii presidin g over elemen ts or over abstractideas . Mr . Dastur says : “ In the abstract anythin gthat i s excellen t an d worthy of praise in the moral an d

material universe and that glorifi es the wisdom of thes

ZOR OA S TE R AND THE ZEND-A VE S TA .

Deity is a yazata . (G . p . xxiv .) Mithra is on e of

The yazatasthe most sign ifican t of these

,because he can

or Spiritual’ be iden tified with Mitra

,the Vedic god of

s enii the heaven ly light,closely associated with Var

una. Mithra was believed to see an d therefore kn oweverything

,an d became the witn ess of truth

an d the preserver of oaths an d good faith ;con sequen tly he puni shes those who break their prom ises .He is also the lord of wide pastures an d the prin ce of

the coun tries . The ten th yast con tain s many hymn sto Mithra

,from which the followin g extracts are made

(S . E .

Ahura Mazda spake unto Spitama Zarathushtra,say

ing :‘Verily

,when I created Mithra

,the lord of wide

pastures,O Spitama

,I created him as worthy of sacrifice

,

as worthy of prayer as myself,Ahura Mazda . The

ruffian who lies un to Mithra (or who breaks the con tract)brings death un to the whole coun try

,injuring as much

the faithful world as a hun dred evil- doers could do .

Break n ot the con tract,0 Spitama

,n either the on e that

thou hadst en tered in to with_on e of the unfaithful

,n or

the on e that thou hadst en tered in to with on e of thefaithful

,who is on e of thy own faith . For Mithra stan ds

for both the faithful an d the un faithful .’“We sacrifice , un to Mithra

,the lord of wide pastures

,

who is truth- speaking,a chief in assemblies

,with a

thousan d ears,well- shapen

,with ten thousan d eyes

,

high,with full kn owledge

,strong

,sleepless

,an d ever

awake .

“Who upholds the column s of the lofty house and

makes its pillars solid ; who gives herds of oxen an d

m ale c hildren to that house in which he has been satisfied ; he b reaks to pieces those in which he has beenoffen ded .

On behalf of Mi thra,loud claims are put forth for a

sacrifice,invoking him in his own name . He is prayed

to for riches,strength

,and victory

,good con s cien ce and

bliss,wisdom an d the kn owledge that gives happin ess .

In on e place he is a warlike,courageous youth

,who

drives in a chariot with four white horses through the

Mithra.

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ZOR OA S TER AND THE ZEND-A VE S TA .

of Ormuzd and sister of Sraosha,Mithra an d others

,b e

stows the human in tellect,defen ds matrimony

,and cares

actively for the house . She confers power and riches,

an d gives beauty to maiden s .An other spi ri t is n amed Geush-urvan

,

“Soul of the

Bull ” in the gathas we fin d this spirit complain ingThe 3 0 111 of before Ormuzd of the oppress1on s an d dangers“19 101111 inflicted on him by en emi es . Besides those

n amed,many other spirits are invoked

,such as the holy

doctrin e,the HolyWord

,the gen ius of justice

,etc . Here

we see how pron e Zoroastrian ism was to person ify ab

stract ideas,just as the Vedic religion person ified material

objects or forces .We n ow come to the obverse side of the picture— the

powers of evil,an d their relation s to Ormuzd an d the

The powers forces of goodn ess . It has already b een statedOf eVfl o how promin en tly the Avesta asserts dualism

in the governmen t of the world ; but there are n ot

wan ting those who con sider‘

that Zoroastrian ism is n ot

more dualistic than Christian ity,an d poin t to the fact

that n o attempt is made to accoun t for the origin of eitherspirit

,while the temporary character of the power of the

evil on e is distin ctly asserted . (West, S .

’

E .,vol . xviii .)

Haug says that Zoroaster held the gran d idea of the un ityan d in divisibility of the supreme Being

,an d sought to

recon cile the existen ce of imperfection s and evils with thegoodne ss an d justice of God by supposmg two primevalcauses which

,though differen t

,were un ited . But it i s

surely simpler to take the plain statemen ts of the gathas,that two powerful beings opposed an d coun teracted eachother

,but that the good Being i s the stronger and will

ultimately con quer,as expressing the essen ce of the creed

of Zoroaster . If on e reads the gathas n aturally,without

prepossession s,it will appear that Ahriman is imagin ed

to have existed from the beginn ing .

Ahriman,the prin ce of the demon s

,is the Opposite

and coun terpart of Ormuzd in all charactel s . He dwellsin infin ite darkn ess

,and is all darkn ess

,false

Ahriman hood and wickedn ess,an d aroun d him all evil

spirits collect . Any good man is his en emy,an d he i s

ZOJEOA S TER 1WA GNJFJED . 2 6 1

represen ted as being enraged at the birth of Zoroaster .The evil spirits are the daevas

, (devas) male, an d thedruj (female) . There are six prin cipal evil The daevas

spirits correspon ding to the Am esha-Spen ta : and dr“J

thus (1) Akoman o,evil min d ; (2) An dra (In dra) , destruo

tive fire ; (3) Saru ,the tyran t

,opposed the first three of

the Am esha-Spen tas .

The first section of the Ven didad exhibits in detailthe way in whi ch Ahriman coun terworked the b en efi cen tcreation of Ormuzd . Hi s first creation was the serpen tin the river

,an d win ter

,followed by the cattle fiy,

corncarrying an ts

,the mosquito

,demon -nymphs an d wizards

,

etc . and also the sin ful lusts,unbelief

,pride

,un natural

sin s,the burying and burning of corpses

,the Oppression

of foreign rul ers,an d excessive heat

,each following a

ben eficial creation of Ormuzd . Ahriman w as also represen ted as the kil ler of the first bul l

,the poison er of plan ts

,

the causer of smoke,of sin

,and of death .

Some of the associate spirits of evil c an be iden tifiedwith Vedic spirits

,such are the Yatus

,wizard demon s .

The Pair ikas are demon -nymphs who keep off the rainfioods . The Drv an ts or Dregv an ts ai e head The Yams

long-runn ing fien ds . The Varenya daev as areDw ants etc

the fien ds in the heaven s . Bushyasta sen ds people tosleep at dawn

,an d makes them forget to say their prayers .

We cann ot go in to the detail s relating to all these .

We must n ote how in the Yasts Zoroaster appears as

the typical and best human being,who first an tagoni sed

Ahriman . Thus,we read in Yast 13

,

“We worship thepiety an d the Fravashi ( see p . 262) spirit of the ZoroasterholyZarathushtra

,who first thought

,spoke

,an d magnifi ed

did what is good,who was the first priest

,the first

warrior,the first plougher of the groun d ,

who first kn ewand taught ; who first possessed the bull

,an d holin ess

,

the word an d obedien ce to the word,and domin ion

,and

all the good things made by Mazda ; who first 1n thematei ial world p1 oclaim ed the word that destroys thedaev as

,the law of Ahura ; who was sti ong, g1v 1ng all the

good things of life,the first bearer of the law among the

n ation s ; for whom the Amesha-Spentas longed, in on e

ZOR OA S TER AND THE ZEND-A VE S TA .

accord with the sun,in the fuln ess of faith of a devoted

heart ; they longed for him ,

'

as the lord an d master of

the world,

x as the praiser of the most great,most good

,

an d most fair Asha ; in whose bir th an d growth thewaters an d the plan ts rejoiced ; an d whose birth an d

growth all the creatures of the good creation s cried out,

Hail"(S E . v ol. xxiii .) Here we see,as if in process

,

the deifi cation of a human being .

The con flict between good and evil was represen tedas un iversal in its exten t . Every power or being orThe uniyersalmaterial thin g was engaged on on e side or the

ca lm“ other . All an imals and plan ts belon g to on e

or the other,or

’

are forced in to their service . S ometimesthe gods and fien ds are seen un der the guise of dogs

,

sn akes,otters

,frogs , etc . ; an d it was held a crime to

kill the creatures of Ormuzd,while a m an might aton e

for evil by killing the creatures of Ahriman . D armesteter

,speculating on this aspect o f the Avesta

,says

,“Per sia was on the brin k of zoolatry .

Of course mankin d were shared between Ormuzd and

Ahriman . The servan t of Ahriman an d of Asha (fire)The good

offers sacrifice to them with libation s of haomaand the juice (the Vedic Soma) , the great heal1ng andWiCKGd invigorating plan t

,which when drunk by the

faithful ben efits the gods ; sacrifices of con secrated meatan d libation s of holy water . He aids Ormuzd an d theholy spirits by every good thought

,word

,and deed

,an d

by in creasing the number of and protecting the creaturesof Ormuzd . The priest

,or Atharvan

,who drives away

fien ds an d diseases by his Spells z the warrior who destroys the impious

,the husban dman who produces good

harvests,are all workers for Ormuzd

,an d those who do

the con trary,for Ahriman . The former will have a seat

n ear Ormuzd in heaven,an d at the end of

‘ time the deadwill rise an d live happily on the earth

,which will then be

free from all evil .In this conn ection we may n ote the belief in the existThe en ce of a spirit (Fravashz

'

) distin ct from theFravashis b ody origin ally

,separated from it by death

,an d

believed to b e simply the spirit of an cestors ; b ut this

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2 64 ZOR OA S TEA’

AND THE ZEND ,A VE S TA .

for three n ights as much as the whole living world can

suffer and then is brought through a foul region in tothe hills of Evil Thought

,Evil Word

,an d Evil Deed

,

and fin ally in to en dless darkn ess . Later this v ision isamplified .

In on e passage of the gathas we find men tion of a

fin al dissolution of creation,when the fin al di stribution

The final of rewards and pun ishmen ts w ill take place ;dis

g‘

l

’

l

l

gtim but the gen eral ten or of the Avesta is to look

renovation. for a regen eration of the earth,with a resur

rection of the bodies of the dead, to join their souls .Many hold that this view of the resurrection was origin alin Zoroastrian ism

,and that it was adopted from the

Persian s by the Jews . The end of the world is to bepreceded by the appearan ce of three great prophets

,all

regarded as supern atural son s of Zarathushtra,the last

on e (Astv at- erta) being n amed the victorious Saviour,

embodied ‘ piety,overcoming all tormen ts of men an d

demon s . He is to ren ew the world,he makes the living

immortal and awaken s the dead from their sleep,brings

death,old age and decay to an en d

,and gran ts to - the

pious etern al life and happin ess . One last decisivestruggle takes place between the powers of light an d

darkn ess,and Astv at- erta

,with the aid of the good

spirits,van quishes the demon s,an d extirpates evil. Then

comes the peaceful an d happy reign of Ormuzd an d all

the good,’

no longer disturbed by any evil-disposed being .

CHAPTER XII.

z nrnastrfau hooks—fi liwraism.

The Avesta—Country of its origi n—Date of the Avesta—The Gathas—Peopleto whom addressed—The Vendidad—The most pleasing and displeasing

things—Impurity of corpses

—Exposure of dead—Law of contracts and

assaul ts—The Vispered and Yasna—The liturgies—The early rites o f

Maz daism—R ise of the Magi—Loss of Zoroastrian b ooks—The Pahl avi

texts—The Bundahish—The Shayast la-Shayast—The Dadistan -i-Dinik

- The Spirit of Wisdom—Mithraism—Mithraicmonuments- Antagonismof Christians—Mithraic ceremonies.

THE AVESTA .

ROM the Avesta itself it appea1 s to be con clusivelyproved that it 0 1 igin ated 1n Eastern Iran ,

east of

the cen tral desert of Pe1 sia,the lan d of the Syr-Daria ,

n early all the places men tion ed in it being situatedtherein

,with the exception of Ragha

,n ear its Country of

western boundary . Babylon is the on ly famous its origin

western city men tion ed . A passage especially n oted isthis

,in which the Aryan coun try i s described as the fi 1 st

created an d best lan d .

“As the first of the lan ds an d asthe best dwelling-place

,I,Ahura-Mazda (Ormuz d) , created

the Aryan a-vaija (the coun try) , situated on the goodDatya . Thereupon Angra Mainyu (Ahriman ) , who isfull of death

,coun ter- created the water serpen ts an d a

win ter produced by the demon s .

’ This Aryan coun trywas very possibly in Upper Ferghana.

The Avesta itself testifies to its own date in the fol263

2 66 THE ZOR OAS TRJAN B OOKS .

lowing way . It does n o t men tion any town which was

Date of the famous in the Median an d Achemen ian periodAvesta' except Ragha ; n or does it mention the n ames

of later n ation s or empires . It on ly kn ows Aryan s , n o tPersian s

,Parthian s

,or Medes as such . It does n ot even

con tain any referen ce to the battles between the Medesan d the Babylon ian s , still less to the con quests of Alexan der the Great . An d this is the more sign ifican t asit alludes to many external even ts

,battles

,in roads of

foreign ers,the hostility of the Aryan s to n on -Aryan s

,

an d of the settled agricu lturists to the n omad tribes .The tribal grouping was in full force

,an d on ly specially

powerful kings were able to un ite the tribes in to kingdoms . It is much more n atural to regard all this as asign of great an tiquity

,especially when coupled with

the primitive type of the Aves ta language . An d it isn ot safe to dismiss portion s of the n arrative as purelymythical -

“

because all trace of some of the n ames m en

tion ed has vanished . Herodotus ’s statemen t that theMedes were an cien tly called Aryan s

,supports this v iew

of the an tiquity of the record which deals solely withAryan s , before the Medes had become a dis tin ct people .

Let us take the gathas , or hymn s of the Avesta,con

tain ed in the Yasn a , and study them for traces of the

people among whom they were composed . In themZoroaster Speaks directly. The king Visht-aspa

The gathas' is described as his pious frien d in his greatwork

,wishful to ann oun ce it ; and in many ways the

gathas address or speak of con temporary person s and

even ts . The religion itself is in process of formation,

an d its followers are subj ect to persecution . No doubtmythology is in termin gled ; b ut if everything whichcon tain s mythological in terpretation s or description s wereadjudged to con tain n o historical fact

,very much more

than the Avesta would have to be sacrificed .

On e importan t fact in timating the great age of the

gathas , and also showin g the con n ection of the Aryanpeople they describe with the Aryan s of the Rig-Veda

,

is the high importan ce attributed to the cow,Showing

special atten tion to its breeding an d rearing . Thus they

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2 68 TJJE ZOR OA S TR JAN B OOKS .

tries were then created,followed by Ahriman ’s creation

of special evils or plagues,in cluding various sin s

,evils

,

and in sect plagues . In the secon d section Zoroaster asksOrmuzd who was the first mortal with whom he hadconversed ; and he replies

,

“The fair Yima,the great

Shepherd,

” who appears to have represen ted the founderof civilisation . Afterwards he Was told that a period offatal win ters was approaching

,and he was comman ded

to gather in to a large en closure all kin ds of seeds and

grain s,and to make a sort of terrestrial paradise . This

Yima“

is compared in some respects with Yama,the ruler

of departed spirits,in the Rig-Veda .

The third section gives an enumeration of five thingsmost pleasin g and five most displeasing to the earth.

The most These are, (1) the place where on e of the

“

faithpjfjrfl

i

ggfi iifigdful with wood for the altar fire

,an d the sacred

things. bun dle of twigs,steps forward praying to

Mithra,the lord of wide pastures

,an d Rama Svastra

,

the god that gives good pastures to cattle ; (2) the placewhere on e of the faithfu l erects a house for a priest

,

with wife,children

,and herds the place where ”

on e

of the faithful cultivate s most corn,grass

,an d fruit ;

(4) where there is most in crease of fiocks and herds ;(5) an d

- where they yield most manure . The unpleasingplaces relate to the corpses or other creation s of Ahriman

,

and also the cap tive wife an d children of on e of theImpurity

”

faithful . No man is allowed to carry a corpseOf c°rpses alon e

,and every corpse

,if buried

,must be

disin terred (for exposure) within six mon ths . A largepart of the Ven didad relates to the exten t of defilem en t

by corpses or portion s of dead matter and the mean s ofpurification . Throughout all we see the guiding principle that purity, especially of the body

,is of prime

importan ce ; b ut impurity is believed to b e the work of

a demon,which especially inhabits a corpse

,and then ce

passes to those who touch it . Peculiar‘

washings and

spells en j om ed in order to expel the impure spirit .Nowhere has this idea of impurity conn ected with thedead been more elaborately developed . The evil spiritis expelled from the corpse itself by the four-eyed dog

LA W OF CONTRA CTS AND AS SA ULTS . 2 69

being brought n ear an d made to look at the dead . In

practice this is in terpreted as a dog w ith “two spots abovethe eyes . This may be compared with the four- eyeddogs of the Vedic god Yama

,an d the three-headed Oer

berus,watching at the doors of hell . Wherever the

corpse passed,death walked with it

,thr eatenin g the

living ; con sequen tly n o man or an imal might pass thatway till the deadly breath had been blown away by thefour- eyed dog

,the pries t aiding with hi s spells .

Fire,earth

,an d water being all holy to Zoroastrian s

,

corpses must be kept as far as possible away from themand placed on the highest summits

,where there Ex posur e

are always corpse eating dogs an d birds,an d °f dead

fasten ed by the feet and hair lest the bon es should becarried away . The bon es must afterwards be laid in abuilding kn own as the Dokma

,or tower of silen ce . This

prin ciple was carried out very thoroughly,partial death

and sickn ess bein g equally un clean . Everything proceedin g from the human body was impu1 e , even parmgs of

n ails an d cut hair . Sickn ess was sen t b y Ahriman ,an d

must be cured b y washings an d spells . If several healersoffered themselves together

,on e healing with the knife

,

on e with herbs,an d on e with the holy word or by spells

,

the latter was to be preferred . Hen ce the class of priestsin c luded the chi ef doctors .The fourth section of the Ven didad is occupied with

laws about con tracts and assaults ; the latter are of sevendegrees

,an d guilt is estimated as very greatly in creased

by each repetition of the offen ce . Crimes are Law of con

pun ished n ot on ly by stripes,b ut in addition tracts and

by pen alties after death . Offen ces again st theassaults ’

gods were pun ished more heavily than offen ces again stman ; an d death is the pun ishmen t of the man whofalsely preten ds to clean se the un clean

,and the man who

carr1es a corpse alon e,these being special offen ces again st

the gods . Repen tan ce only saves the sin n er from pen alties after death . The burn in g or burial of the dead

,

the eating dead matter,and unn atural crimes were in

expiable,apparen tly pun ished by death as well as future

tormen ts .

70 THE ZOA’OAS TRZAN B OOKS .

The Vispered and Yasn a properly form an in divisiblepart of the Avesta ; in fac t

,they con stitute a liturgy .

The Vispe 1 ed, which is very shor t, con tain s merely 1n

vocation s and invitation s to Ormuzd an d the good gen iiThe Visper

‘

ed to be presen t at the ceremon ies about to beand Yasna performed . The Yasn a mean s literally offering with prayers ,

”and in cludes the gathas or hymn s

,to

which we have already referred . These were to berecited “by the priests alon e (the laity n ot being presen t),during the performan ce of certain religious ceremon ies

,

which in brief were the con secration of holy water,of the

sacred twigs or Baresma,and of the juice of the Haoma

,

and the offering of the draonas,or little roun d cakes

,on

which pieces of cooked fi esh were placed,an d afterwards

e aten by the priests . Properly it was the priest ’s duty torecite the en tire Avesta once every twen ty-four hours

,

and prin cipally during the n ight, this being essen tial inorder that they might keep themselves fit to performthe rites of purification .

The liturgies are n ot of interest proportion ate to theirlength

,and it is difficult to give an idea of their varied

character within our limits . Here is a brief extract fromthe Vispered We hon our the omn iscien t spirit Ahura

The Mazda . We hon our the light of the sun . We

liturgies hon our,the sun

,the Amesha-Spen tas . We

hon our the perfect Man tras . We hon our the brillian tworks of purity . Nv e hon our the assemblies

,of which

fire is the cause . We hon our pure and ben evolen t pros

perity and in telligen ce . Again,

“Apply your feet,han ds

,

will,Mazdean s

,disciples of Zarathustra

,to the practice

of the good works prescribed by law arid justice,to the

avoidan ce of bad action s,con trary to law

,and unjust ;

give to those who lack .

”

The Yasn a largely con sists of lists of those in whosehon our the var1ous con secrated objects are offered

,or

to whose praise the priests a1 e chan ting . Thus : “Withthis Baresma an d holy water I hon our the pure spiritsof the mon ths

,pure Spirits of the pure world. I hon our

the n ew moon,pure spirits of the pure world .

” Frequen tly various poin ts in the history or achievemen ts of

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2 72 THE ZOR OA S TR JAN B OOKS .

an d weak .

”A long accoun t of the origin and history

of Haoma is put in to the mouth of Zoroaster,and prayer

is offered to him as a person,in extravagan t t erms .

Paradise,health

,long life

,prosperity

,conquest

,safety

,

posterity,etc .

,are among the gifts besought of Haoma .

He is also asked to frustrate the efforts of those whowould injure the worshipper

,and to bring every calamity

upon him .

From these various in dication s we may picture to ourselves the Zoroastrian religion as practised cen turies

The earlybefore the Christian era

,and long after the

rites of time of Zoroaster . It is to be n oted that themaZdal sm' Avesta con tain s n o men tion of temples ; and

the sacred fire was kept up on altars in the open air on

e levated places,at most surroun ded by a simple wall .

No image or represen tation of the gods or gen ii wasmade ; fire alon e was sufficien t to symbolise them

,kept

up perpetually in great ston e or copper basin s,fed with

the choicest wood . The priests (atharvan s) taught theholy law ,

recited the sacred texts and invocation s,pre

pared the Haoma,washed and kept the sacred vessels

,

and presided at ceremon ies of pen an ce and purification .

They were expected to kn ow the Avesta by heart,and

had charge of the in struction an d in itiation of n ovicesand studen ts . It appears that they were accustomed togo from place to

'

place in the exercise of their sacredfun ction s ; and some of them were medically skilled, butperformed many cures by sacred formulas . The holy dayswhich the religion prescribed were sufficien tly numerous

,

in cluding the l st,8th

,18th

,an d 28rd of each mon th

,

sacred to Ormuzd,the 3rd an d 5th to the Am esha-Spen tas ,

an d every day had its special spirit or deity . The n ew

year ’s festival to Ormuzd,and that of the autumn al

equ in ox to Mithra,were among the prin cipal festivals ;

an d the dead in gen eral were celebrated on the last tendays of the year . The con tamin ation s that made m en

impure,as we have already detailed them

,gave much

work to the priests in purification .

By the time of Darius,Chaldaean and Semitic image

worship had influen ced the worshippers of Ormuzd to a

R ISE OF THE MA G]. 2 73

limited exten t . Darius placed a symbolical picture of

the god on his in script1on s Artaxerxes II. Rise Of the

erected statues and a temple to An ahita,at Magi

Ecbatan a . How the Magian s became the priests of theAvesta religion we have n o clea1 accoun t . They appearto have been a tribe or caste of the Medes

,and probably

they were the inheritors of the primitive Aryan tradition,

who accepted the Zoroastrian developmen t of it,an d ac

quired great influen ce in the Persian empire,becoming

not only teachers of religion,an d priests

,b ut also political

admin istrators and advisers and they appear to have b ecome combin ed or amalgamated with the priestly familiesof old Persia . The Sacred fire was carried before thekin gs by Magian s

,an d the king ’s son s were in structed

by them in the religion of Zoroaster . It is doubtfulwhether at this time they occupied themselves with soothsaying

,prophecy

,the in terpretation of dreams

,etc it

i s probable that these offices were performed by the

Chaldaean priests . The Greek historian s represen t thatn o on e could sacrifice in Persia without a Magian . Theyoffered sacrifices at high places

,first praying to fire (or

rather,looking towards the sacred fire) . They sacrificed

an imals,strikmg them down with a club b ut n o part of

the flesh was set apart for the deity,the soul of the

anim al on ly being required . As far west as Cappadocia,

”

says Strabo,

“ there were en closed places,in the midst

of which was an altar heaped up with ashes . On thisthe Magian s kept up the unquen chable fire . Each daythey wen t and sang for an hour before the fire

,holding

in their hands a bundle of twigs .

” The Magian religionextended eve n to the cities of Lydia

,where Pausan ias

observed their worship .

The exposure of corpses was but partially practised bythe an cien t Persian s

,and may have been restricted to

the priests . Certainly the kings were buried : b ut un derthe Sassan ian mon archy

,the dead were exposed according

to the modern custom .

There can be little doubt that the Avesta an cien tlycon sisted of many more books than we have at presen t .

Various tradition s speak of their number (twen ty-on e)

2 74 THE ZOR OA S TR JAN B OOKS .

and con ten ts,and the efforts made to preserve them ;

LOSS ofAlexander the Great

,in a drunken frolic

,burn t

Zoroastrian the palace at Persepolis , which contain ed on e

100 0 1“of the two then exi stin g complete copies of

these books and the other was said to have been takenaway by the Greeks . The attempts of the Sassaniankings of Persia to collect and preserve the Zoroastrianbooks were rendered futile by the destroying fury of theMohammedan s

,and those who refused to adopt the faith

of the con querors emigrated to In dia,an d settled chiefly

on western shores . They preserved some portion s of theAvesta

,together with tran slation s

,commen taries

,an d

origin al works in the Pahlavi language an d character,

which prevailed in Persia from the third to the ten thThe pehlevi cen tury A .D . In these Pahlavi texts we have

texts much of the middle period of Mazdaism,with

a strange mixture of old an d n ew materials ,” says Dr . West

,

and exhibiting the usual symptom of declin ing powers , astrong in sisten ce upon comp lex forms an d m i nute details .”

The Bun dahish 1s on e of these texts which gives an

accoun t of cosmogony an d legen dary history,describ ing

The creation un der the good and evil influen ces ofBundahish Ormuzd and Ahriman

,with their conflicts

,an d

c oming down to early P ersian kings an d to Zoroaster,

with a brief accoun t of late1 Persian history . There aremany referen ces which indicate that this 1s a tran slationwith commen tary from an Avesta origin al . The BahmanYast 1s a remarkable prophetical book

,in which Ormuzd

is said to give to Zarathustra a n arrative of the futurehistory of his religion .

The Shayast La- Shayast is a werk abou t“ the proper

an d the 1mpr0per , or laws an d customs about sin and

impurity . The n ature an d degrees of differen tbreaches of propriety

,the kin ds of good works

and those who can or cann ot perform them,the mode of

aton ing for s in s , various kin ds of worship,an d an infin ite

num b er of detailed rules are given ,showing n o elevation of

min d,but a pedan t1c relian ce on outward formal purification .

The Dadistan - i-D in ik,by Manuskihar

,a high priest

of the Parsees , was written in the n in th cen tury,and

The Shayast .

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76 THE ZOB OA S TBTAN B OOKS .

Spirit. He makes referen ces to,and attacks the in con sis

ten c 1es he fin ds 1n Mohammedan,J eW 1sh

,Christian

,and

Mam chman doc tr1n e .

The recurren ce of the n ame of Mithra in the precedin gchapters

,from page 7 onwards

,will already have been

n oted ; a n d we must n ow give a brief accoun t of theobscure cultus which has been termed Mithraism

,which

some assert to have been the most widespread religioussystemin the Roman empire for some cen turies after theri se of Ch1 istian ity, having been even brought in to thiscoun ti y by the Roman soldiery (see J . M . Robertson in“Religious Systems of the World

,

”1890

,pp . 225

In the Veda,Mithra is twin -god with Varun a ; in

Zoroaster,he is lord of wide pastures

,c 1 eated by Ahura

Mazda ; lie was still lord of the heaven ly light,and so

became specially the sun -god,god of light and truth

,of

moral goodn ess an d purity,pun ishing the Mithra-Druj

,

‘him who lies to Mithra ’

; hen ce also he is a judge in

hell . (S .E .,iv . xxiii .) Rawlin son says that Darius

Hystaspes placed the emblems of Ahura-Mazda and of

Mithra in equally con spicuous position s on the sculpturedtablet above his tomb an d his example wasfol lowed , by later mon archs . The n ame Mithradates

,

given by Mithra,so often born e by Eastern mon archs

,

is an other testimony to the influen ce of Mithra . He cameto be regarded as a sort of in termediate b etween Ormuzdan d Ahriman

“

,a mediator etern ally young

,preserving man

kind from the evil on e,and performin g a mysterious sacri

fi ce,through which the good will triumph ; and in some

aspects Mithra was regarded as a female deity,and there

are many Mithraic monumen ts on which the symbols of

Mithraic two deities appear,male and female . The

monuments Graeco -Roman bas-relief of Mithras slaymg a

bull,in the British Museum

,in dicates on e form of the

symbolism associated with this god,an d conn ected with

the idea of sacrifice and purification ; and m other association s a ram was slain to Mithra . We learn from Origenthat the Mithraic mysteries in cluded a complex represen

M ITHRAIC CERE TWOZVIE S . 2 77

tation of the movemen ts of the stars and planets,and of

the disembodied human soul among them .

Much of the difficulty of comprehen ding Mithraismreally is due to its opposition and proscription by earlyChristian ity

,an d to the secrecy with which its worship

was carried on,largely in caves . There are Antagonism

many remain s of Mithraic altars out out in °f Christians

rocks,and he was even n amed Mithras out of the rock .

The rites w ere probably to a large exten t derived fromthose of Zoroas trian ism . At the vern al equin ox

,the deity

appears to have been symbolically mourn ed as dead , a ston eimage being laid by n ight on a bier to represen t the deadgod ; an d Justin Martyr and Tertul lian describe in itiationan d other ceremoni es of the worshippers of Mithra, whichthey regarded as imitation s of the Christian sacramen ts .We can see in the light of the Greek myth of Persephon e ,that this was n o imitation

,b ut an early an d widespread

symbolism of the early death of Nature,and the restored

life of spring- time . In itiation w as an elaborate ordeal,in cluding trial by water

,by fire

,by cold

,by hunger

,by

thirst,by scourging

,etc . ; and the worshippers Mithraic

were divided in to differen t grades,called after ceremomes o

differen t birds an d other an imals . Tertullian says thatthe soldier of Mithra was offered a crown

,whi ch it was

his place to refuse,saying Mithra was his crown . Mithra

ism seems to have had con siderab le popularity among thelater Roman soldiery

,an d to have been ackn owledged by

the emperors,so that there are many military in scription s

,“Deo Soli Inv ic to Mithrae

,

”—“to the invin cible sun -god,

Mithra .

” The m ost usual represen tation of him depicts ayoung man in Orien tal costume kn eeling with on e kn ee ona pros trate bull

,grasping the head and pulling it back

with his left hand,while with the right he plunges his

sword in to its n eck . A dog,a snake

,an d a scorpion

drink the blood flowing from the bull,and the sun and

moon occupy the two sides of the relief.There is much curious speculation and fact bearing

0 11 Mithra-worship,b ut the study cann o t yet be said to be

p laced on a basis of certainty an d to say tha t Christian ityborrowed largely from Mithraism

,is quite unproved .

CHAPTER. XIII .

fi lament harswism.

The Parsees - Their persecutions—Their principles - A Parsee catechismThe priesthood—Devotions of the laity—Festivals—Ceremonia.l ritesDeathb ed forms—The towers of silence—Ceremonies of departed souls—Family life—Foundation and consecration of towers.

QPEOPLE within a people,like the Jews in England,the Parsees have attain ed and main tain ed an ih

fluen ce and wealth far beyon d their numerical proportion .

Their persisten ce is in its way as strong a testimony tothe power of heredity as any. The people surv ive by thcommercial ability their r eligion survives with them

,

like Judaism with ‘

the Jews . Persecution was long their

Persecutionfate

,both in Persia an d In dia ; the difficulties

of the”

of their struggle for existen ce have fixed the1rParsees striking characteristics in a mould more tena

cion s of life . May w e n ot say that they have largelypreserved a pure faith in one supr eme b enefic en t God

,

Ormuzd, and believe them when they repudiate the de sign ation fire-worshippers

,an d reject idolatry in all forms ?

Fire they revere,fire is the symbol of their god

,and they

do n ot treat fire lightly in any circumstan ces; in deed

,they

are the on ly people who un iversally refrain from to b accoTheir smoking

,as offen ding their religious prin ciples .

principles. But they are equally fixed in the determin ationn ot to defile any of the works of Ormuzd

,whether e arth

,

water,an imals

,or plan ts ; and their practices of clean li

n ess and frequen t person al ablution must have contributed278

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2 80 M ODERN PARSEEIS JII.

of creation . Prayers are addressed to these spirits . Prayeris made that the evil may become virtuous and b e pardon edby the mercy of Ormuzd . There is n o propitiation of the

evil spirits,or prayer to them .

The priesthood is han ded down by inheritan ce fromfather to son

,although priests may become laymen . The

The priest high priests, or dasturs , are the especial religioushOOd authorities

,imposing pen an ces an d

'

declaring“

doctrin ef The ordin ary priests,or mob eds

,and the lower

priests,or herb ads

,complete the religious orders of the

Parsees . They have a coun cil,or Pan chyat, composed of

six dasturs and twelve mob eds,which settles all the

join t affairs of the Parsee commun ity . At presen t thecon dition of the Parsee priesthood is on e of progress ; twocolleges , represen ting the two sects of the Parsees (markedby comparatively un importan t differen ces), have beenestablished

,un der able teachers ; an d learn ed works of

con siderable value bearing on the history and an cien ttexts, of their religion have been produced by Parseeswho have studied at German umv ersities an d writeEnglish with fluen cy . The Parsee commun ity does notmake offerings to the priests an d to the temples thechief or on ly meritorious work ; b ut its charitable in stitution s are numerous

,an d a Parsee beggar is unkn own .

AS to the devotion al practices Of the laity,a man who

is very religious will say prayers many times a day,

Devotions

“

alb eit in the Av esta language,which he does

Of the lait n ot understan d . Prayer may be said on risingfrom sleep

,after bathing

,and after every Operation of

life,before and after meals

,and before going to bed .

Am ong the strangest an d most repul sive of Parsee praotices to western n otion

,is the habit of rubbing n irang

(cow s ur in e) over face an d hands,as a specific again st

devas or evil Spirits , a prayer or in can tation being recitedat the same time . D evotion s at the Parsee fire altars

are quite option al , and they may b e perfo rmedat any time by the worshippers , who usually

give something to the priests . There is,however

,a con

siderab le atten dan ce at the festivals,about On ce a week,

and at special season s,such as the six days ’ festival in

Festivals .

FIRE TE IWPLE OF PAR SEE S, BAKUf 2 81

the middle Of win ter, celebrating the six periods of creation , that at the Spring equinox in hon our Of agriculture

,

that to Mithra, etc . On the ten th day of the eighthmon th there is a festival to Frav ardin

,who presides over

the souls of th e departed,when special ceremon ies for the

these are in addition to annual celebration s for the deadin each house .

.

New Year’s Day is both a day of religious

2 82 III ODE RN PA RSEEISM .

visited and prayers said,looking towards the altar of

sacred fire . Visits to frien ds,with ceremon ial han d-join

ing,follow

,and alms are given to the poor .

The Parsee in fan t,born on a groun d floor

,to which he

is again brought as soon as he is dead,has his n ativity

Ceremonial cast on the seven th day by a Brahman or Parseerites astrologer-priest at seven years Old

“he is puri

fied with n irang,and invested w ith the sacred girdle of

seven ty- two threads,represen tin g the seven ty- two chap

ters of the Yasn a . AS the priest blesses the child,he

throws

'

upon its head portion s of fruits,spices

,and per

fumes . This is the ceremony of the kustz'

. Marriagesare carefully arranged by the astrologer

,but are cele

b rated with a religious ceremony,in which the couple

are tied together by a silken cord gradually woun d roundthem

,while a b en ediction is pronoun ced in Zend an d

Deathb ed San skrit . It is in their fun erals that the ParformS Sees are most peculiar . A dyin g Parsee will

be attended by a priest,who repeats to him con solatory

texts“

from the Avesta,gives him the sacred Haoma juice

to drink,an d prays for the forgiven ess of his

‘

sin s . Theb ody is then taken to a groun d-floor room from whicheverything has been removed

,laid upon ston es

,washed

in warm water,dressed in clean white clothes

,and laid

upon an iron bier. The priest,in the presen ce of the

corpse,gives an exhortation to the relatives to live pure

and holy lives , so that they may meet the deceased againin paradise . This exhortation con sists of the first gathaof Zoroaster . A dog is brought in to look at the deceased

,this being kn own as the sag

-did or dog ’s gaze .

This u sed to be looked upon as a m ean s of judging,by

the dog ’s in stinct,whether life was really extin ct ; b ut

it is n ow explain ed as securin g the passage of the soulover the Chinv at bridge

,over which on ly the pious pass

to heaven . The carriage of the body to the towers of

The towers silen ce is committed to a special class of 'ParseesOf Silence called Nessusalar

,or un clean

,from the work

they perform . The towers of silen ce in Bombay arecon structed on the top of Malabar Hill

,a great home of

vultures . Built of ston e,they rise about twen ty-fiv e

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CONSE CRA TION OF T OWERS . 2 85

the bodies of the dead,dimin ishing towards the in terior

,

the exterior row being used for m en,the middle for

women,an d the inn er for children . Each receptacle is

separated from the others by ridges about an in ch high '

an d chann els are cut for the purpose”

of conveying allliquids in to a deep hollow,

or well,in the cen tre of the

tower.

“When the corpse has been completely strippedof its flesh by the vultures

,which is gen erally ac com

plished within on e hour at the outside,an d when the

bon es of the denuded skeleton are perfectly dried upby the powerful heat of a tropical sun

,they are thrown

in to this pit, where they crumble in to dust . There arealso four drain s leading from the pit to the exterior , Opening 1n to four wells . “At the mouth Of each drain charcoal an d san dston es are placed for purifying the fluidbefore it en ters the groun d , thus observing on e of the

ten ets of the Zoroastrian religion ,that the mother earth

shall n ot be defiled .

” The wells have a permeable bottom

,which is covered with san d to a height of five or

seven feet .

The foundation - laying an d the con secration of a n ew

tower is an occasion of great ceremony . After the groun dhas been marked out an d limited with a thread Foundationcarried roun d a large number of n ails arranged

sef‘

rflighn

efin a circle

,prayers are Offered to Sraosha

,the towers .

guardian deity of the souls of the dead,to Ormuzd

,and

to Spen ta Armati,the guardian deity Of earth

,to de

parted souls,an d to the seven Am esha-Spen tas . These

prayers,ackn owledging that it is wrong to con tamin ate

the earth with the bodies of the dead,pray that the en

closed space,an d n o more

,may be occupied for depositing

the bodies of departed souls . At the con secration of adokhma

,a tren ch is dug all roun d it, an d then in the

cen tre of the tower two priests perform the Yasn a an d

Ven didad prayers and ceremon ies in hon our of Sraosha

for three con secutive morn ings an d n ights . On the fourthmorn ing there is a prayer in hon our of Ormuzd ; an d

afterwards there are similar prayers to those at the

foundation . Other services outside the tower follow,

during and after which thousan ds of Parsees visit the

2 86 [MODERN PAR S EEISAI .

tower,which is afterwards closed to everybody. S ome

times the towers are erected by public subscription,b ut

private person s frequen tly bear the sole expen se , it beingcon sidered a specially meritorious act to build on e .

Thus,in the midst of an tagon istic creeds

,persists the

religion associated with the n am e Of Zoroaster,a stan ding

revelation to us Of the ideas and worship of long- distan tages . Reveren ce and worship for the great Ormuzd

,the

supreme Being,prin cipally typified by the won drous fire

,

dread of the evil spirit an d anxiety to avoid the evils hecan bring

,and practical charity chiefly characterise this

most in terestin g survival from the past . Learn ed modernParsees main tain an d teach that invocation s to spiritso ther than the supreme God do n ot belong to the religionas origin ally established by Zoroaster

,an d that they m ay

all be dispen sed with,retain ing the belief in on e God and

in purity of thought,word

,and deed . They hold also

that all their ritual an d ceremon ies may be altered according to the spiritual state and n eeds of the commun ity .

[For the b est account of the modern Parsees and their present religious

state, see“History of the Parsees ,

” b yDosabhai Fram ji Karaka, late

memb er Of the B omb ayLegislative Coun cil. Macmillan ,

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288 INDEX.

B uddhism, Modern ,175—235.

Precepts of, 71 , 122 , 130, 151, 158,160.

R eformed sects of, 202 .

S iamese , 201 .

Singhalese , 180 .

T ib etan , 204, 208 .

Buddhist councils, 164 , 165, 176.

grades o f attainm en t , 157 .

monks, 128, 151 , 157, 162, 186, 189,

nun s , 131 , 172 , 230.

o rders , 162—173 , 183 .

scho ol, 188 .

scripture s , 120, 146 , 158, 185, 221 .

state o f ab straction ,156 .

Buhler, Prof. , on Mann,39.

Bundahish, 274 .

Burial, B urm ese, 200.

Hindu ,1 13 .

Parsee , 282 .

S iam ese , 202 .

B urmese cerem onies , 196.

m onasteries, 190 , 192 .

pagodas, 194 , 196 .

w orship ,196 . E

Burn ing Of windows, 116 °

Esoteric Buddhism, 174.

CEx orcism,

186.

Calendar, Buddhist, 231 .

Car festival , Hindu, 100 .

Caste , 22, 32 . 36, 42, 50 , 58.

Catechism , Parsee , 279.

Causal n ex us, 149.

Causality, Buddhist do ctrine Of,Cave temples . 182 .

Ceremonies, B uddhist,185.

Burmese, 196:

Hindu, 85, 1 13 .

M ithraic , 277 .

C

P

arsee , 280, 282 .

ey on , 185. 9

Chaitanya, 70, 76 . 97, 104 .

Of’ 1 0 ’ “03 ’

Chao Phya Phraklang, 20

Children , B eliefs ab out , 202 .

Chinese B uddhism,2 18, 224 .

Code OfYajnavalkya, 54 .

Confession andpenan ce, Buddhist , 16

Corpse , Customs of Zoroastrians , 268,

Cremation ,113

,202 .

D

Dadistan - i-Dinik,275.

Daevas , 261 .

Dagob as, 184.

Dalai Lam as , 210.

Dances, Hindu, 81 .

Dandis,104.

Darme steter on Zoroaster,251 .

Dead, Ceremon ies fo r the , 1 13 .

Ex posure o f,268, 269, 283, 285.

Sacrifices for, 46 .

Death, Hindu idea of, 112 .

Deified m en ,14

, 80 .

Deity, Hindu incarnation s of, 60, 63 .

emo ns , 80.

Devadatta, 130.

Devendra Nath Tagore , 107 .

Dhammapada, 147 149,“

154,159.

Dissolution , The final, 264 .

D octrine of the M ean of B uddha,146 .

Do in othing B uddhist sect, 234 .

Druj,261

D rvants 261 .

Dualism , Zoroastrian doctrin e of, 253 .

Durga, 79, 94 .

Duties of the Four Castes, 42 .

of h ugs , 49.

yan s, 5 , 10 .

ying, the treatment of, b y Hindus,

Fa-hien,178.

Fasts , 24, 215.

Fatalism , 1 10 .

Feasts, Pagoda, 198.

Fe stivals, Buddhis t, 216.

Hindu, 92 , 94, 100 .

Parsee , 280 .

Filial piety, B rahman ,44 .

Fire-worship, 279.

Flood, Hindu tradition of,Fravashis , 262 .

Futurfe3life , Heathen idea

2

Ganesa, 80.

Ganga, 80 .

Ganges, Hindu superstition ab out, 112 .

Gathas , 266 .

Gautama, 33 , 57, 121, 157, 181 , 206.

Gayatri, 87.

Geige r, Dr., on Zoroastrianism,

254 .

Geush -urvan ,

God, Hindu con ception of, 67.

Gods o f Aryan s , 2 .

Hindus , 28, 30, 60, 66, 69, 72 , 76—82 .

Mann,40.

Vedas , 2, 3,

INDEX. 2 89

Grand Lamas, 208—212 .

Greater Vehicle, 180 , 206 .

Greek religion and Vedic, 2, 6.

Greeks and the Magi, 247 .

Guru, 85.

H.

ardy, Spen ce, on Viharas , 181, 185.

eaven , The Buddhist, 207.

Hell, Chin ese idea of, 232 .

Hindu, 110 .

in Manu,42 .

Hermit, The Brahman , 35, 48.

Hindu doctrin es, 119.

ideals, 40.

morals, 116.

pilgrimages, 95.

religiousn ess, 84 .

ritual, 34 .

sects, 102 .

Hinduism , Modern, 56, 83 .

Huen -S iang, 178 .

Hunter, SirW., on Vishnu w orship, 66.

Hymn s,Early Vedic, 4

—7 , 10—18.

I.

Ideals, Hindu ,40.

Images of Buddha, 181 , 182, 191 , 201,224, 225.

Chinese, 224 , 225.

Hindu, 92, 99.

Imm ortality, 22.

Hindu doctrine of, 62 .

Zoroastrian teaching of, 263 .

Indian Wisdom ,

”b y Monier

Williams, 59.

Indra, 4 , 10, 30.

Institutes of the Sacred Law, 34 .

J .

J acob i,Prof.

, on Mahavira, 239.

J agannath, 76, 84, 99.

J aimini , 34 .

J ainism , 238.

J ain s,B eliefs of, 241 .

J apanese Buddhi sm ,236.

J uggernaut worship , 70.

K.

Kab ir, 70.

Panthis, 102 .

Kali, 79.

Kalki avatar ,"6.

Kanishka,177 .

Karma, 174.

Keshub Chunder S en , 108.

Khshathra-varya, 256

King-deification , 49.

Krishna, 59—62, 76.

Kshatriya, 42, 43 .

Kullavagga, 171 .

Kumarila, 58.

Kwan -yin , 225.

N.

Nature-worship ,4 .

Nat-worship ,198.

Nirvana, 122 , 144, 146, 151 , 160, 169,241 .

Nuns,Buddhist, 131, 172, 231 .

Nyaya, 33 .

L.

La-b rang, The m onastery of, 213.Lakshmi, 76.

Lamas, 208, 210 .

Laos, 202 .

Law of Manu , 37Lesser Vehicle, 179.

Linga, 72, 79.

Liturgies, 270 .

Local deities, Hindu , 80.

Madvas,102 .

M agi, 247, 273 .

Mahab harata, 58.

Mahavagga, 163 .

Mahavira, 240.

Mahom etani sm , 70.Maitreya, 206.

Manju- sri,207 .

Manu,22 , 37 , 41 .

Mara, 155.

Marriages , 35, 46, 48, 52, 54,Maruts, 10 .

Maya, 1 10 .

Mazda (see Ahura) , 254.

Mazdaism ,Early ri tes of, 27

M iracle -plays , 92 .

Missionary religion s, 175.

M ithraism , 265, 276 .

Mitra, 7 , 9, 258, 259, 268.

M onasteries, 189, 190, 194, 211 , 213 ,230.

Mongol emperors, 209, 222 .

Monier-Williarns , S ir , Quotations from,

2,16, 19, 59, 74 , 176 .

M onks , Buddhist, 128, 152, 157, 186.

M onotheism ,18, 73 .

M onum ents, M ithraic , 276.

M oun t Ab u, 243 .

Muir , Dr . , 6, 7 , 9.

Muller, Max , 2 , 17, 26.

2 90 INDEX.

0 .

Oldenb urg, P rof., on Buddha, 118,

Om, The syllab le , 26, 34, 44 , 88.

O rder, The Buddhist , 146, 163, 177.O rders of B rahm an s , 35.

Origin of things , Vedic , 6 .

of world, 26.

Ormuz d, 253 , 254 , 260, 262 .

Outcasts,Brahman , 36.

P .

Pagahn ,The pagodas of, 196 .

Pagodas, Burm es’

e , 195, 196, 198 .

feasts ,Pahlavi

,

Pali b ooks,Pan chen Lamas , 210 .

Pantheism ,

Papias on the origin of the Gospels,707

Papuan s, 23, 39.

Parab les, 700 .

Buddhist,Parasnath,

244 .

Parsees , 278—281 , 284, 286.Patriarchs , 220 .

Penan ce, 37Philo sophy, B rahman , 28, 29.

Sankhya, 33 .

Vedantist,59.

Yoga, 34.

Phon -

gyees , 191 .

Pilamas,181 .

Pilgrimages, 95, 97 , 242 .

Pirit, the cerem ony, 185.

Praj apati,Prayer cylinders , 214 .

walls and flags, 215.

Prayers , B rahman , 39.

P raying b ymachin ery,Priests , B uddhist, 186.

Hindu,19, 91 .

Parsee, 279.

Prithivi, 2 .

Punishment , Brahman , 56.

Future, 17 , 1 10, 149.

Puranas , 66, 68.

Puri, 96, 97 .

Purification ,

Pu sa, 218 .

Pushan ,11 .

R amayana, 62 , 68.

R ammohun R oy, 106.

R angoon , The great temple of,194.

R eligion an d m ission s, 176 .

Rewards , 17 , 41 , 110.

R ig-Veda 2 14, 17—19, 29.

R ishis , 3 .

R itual, 34, 46 , 47, 66 , 87 90, 214, 2 16.

R ome, ancient, R eligion of, 2, 6 .

Sacred syllab le OM ,26, 34, 44 .

tree,82 .

Sacrifices, 135.

Anim al, 21 .

for the dead, 46.

Household, 23 .

Human ,21

, 100.

Sacrificial fires, 24 .

Saktas, 104 .

Sakyamuni , 219.

Salagram , 72 .

Sama-Veda, 21 .

Sankara, 64 .

Sankhya, 33 .

Satapatha-B rahmana, 21 .

Savitri, 1 1 .

S chools , B uddhist, 188, 228.

S cott , Mr . Shway on Bud

dhism,190, 196.

S criptures, Buddhist, 120, 158.

Tib etan ,205.

Sects , Sivaitic . 104 .

of Vishnu ,102 .

S elf-ex istent , The Upan ishad doctrin fof the, 27

—30, 53 .

-discipline, Buddhist , 154 .

-repression ,Hindu,

40.

Shastras, The six , 32 .

Shayast , 274 .

Shin -shin , 236.1

Shway Dagohn Payah , 194.

S iameseB uddhism,201 .

S ick, The treatment of, 188.

S ikh B ib le, 106 .

S ikhs , 105.

S iliditya, 178.

S inghalese Buddhism,180.

Siva, 64, 73 , 77, 96.

Sivaitic sects, 104 .

Smartas, 66.

S oma, 12 .

Soul , Buddhist doctrine of, 150.

S oul of the Bull ,”260.

penta-Armati, 257.

Spirit ofWisdom, Opin lon s of, 275.

Sraosha, 259.

Storm-gods, Vedic, 10.

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